Women's Water Polo | February 23, 2020
POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. – Women's water polo (5-9) succumbed to a pair of losses on Saturday: 21-8 to #18 Wagner (11-5) and a much-closer 13-10 result to Brown (9-1). Junior
Sarah DeFusco led the Explorers with five goals across the pair of games, while classmate
Madison Martinez tallied a hattrick and three assists against the Bears.
Wagner 21, La Salle 8
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Seahawks got off to a fast start, outscoring La Salle 7-2 in the first quarter. That lead expanded to 11-3 by the time the halftime break arrived.
- Wagner continued to control the narrative out of the half, scoring five of the six goals in the third. The fourth period was much closer with the Seahawks edging La Salle 5-4.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
- DeFusco and junior Lizzie Nadolski each scored twice to lead the Explorers.
- Freshman Sofia Curtis was the team's leading provider with two assists. Fellow rookie Shanna Zuanich also finished with two points, netting a goal and dishing an assist.
- SoFlo among the Scoring: all of the team's South Florida natives had parts to play in goals against Wagner. Sophomore Sabrina Hoffmeister scored, while Martinez and senior Racquel Jimenez tallied assists.
- Senior Katelynn Kubo led the team in blocks with two. Sophomore Charley Stricker paced the Blue & Gold in exclusions earned (three) in addition to scoring once.
Brown 13, La Salle 10
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Explorers battled from behind early on in this contest as Brown held a 3-1 lead after one quarter. The Ivy League side pushed its advantage to 7-3 at the half.
- La Salle outscored the Bears in the third quarter, 4-3, to make it a three-score game heading into the final frame. The teams split the fourth 3-3 as Brown held on to win.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
- All of the scoring came from four Explorers: DeFusco and Martinez recorded hattricks with Koerper and Zuanich netting braces.
- All but three assists came from those players as well with Martinez providing three, DeFusco dishing two and Zuanich once. Kubo (twice) and freshman Sophie Appler (once) also assisted.
- Well-rounded: Zuanich also managed a steal, an exclusion earned and block. DeFusco tallied a kickout drawn and a block.
UP NEXT
- The Explorers will take nearly two weeks off before returning to action in California for the Convergence Cup. They'll face Chapman and #16 Loyola Marymount on March 6th, followed by Fresno Pacific and Occidental the next day.
