Women's Water Polo | March 6, 2020

CLAREMONT, Calif. – Women's water polo (6-10) kickstarted the Convergence Cup on Friday, defeating Chapman before falling to #12 Loyola Marymount. Junior Sarah DeFusco paced the Blue & Gold with five goals on the day, followed by freshman Casey Malone with four.
 
La Salle 14, Chapman 9
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Panthers netted the opening goal of the game, which the Explorers answered with a 5-2 run over the duration of the quarter. 
• Chapman scored three straight to take its first lead of the game at 6-5. Malone tied it for La Salle, but the Panthers went one up, scoring with under a minute left.
• The third quarter started in favor of the Panthers, but goals from DeFusco and sophomore Madelyn Koerper tied the game at 8-8. Despite Chapman retaking the lead, junior Madison Martinez and freshman Shanna Zuanich gave La Salle a 10-9 lead heading into the final frame.
• The Explorers dominated the fourth quarter, scoring four and blanking the Panthers to claim the win.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Malone and Zuanich led the goal front with each rookie recording a hattrick. For Zuanich it's her second three-goal game of her career, while it's Malone's first.
• DeFusco, Martinez and junior Jillian DeLisle also finished with multi-goal games, each scoring twice.
• Koerper led all players in points with six—scoring once and assisting five.  DeFusco added three assists to her stat line, tied for second most on the team with senior Katelynn Kubo (who also scored once).
• On the defensive end, junior Karle Linden was tied for the team lead in steals and blocks, tallying two of each. She also finished with the most kickouts drawn with four, followed by Koerper on three.
• In net, freshman Emma Gurasich came into the game and recorded five saves on seven shots.

Loyola Marymount 16, La Salle 7
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Lions opened up a 2-0 lead within the first minute of the game with both teams battening down defensively afterwards. The next goal would come from Koerper with 10 seconds remaining in the quarter.
• Three straight scores from Loyola to open the second pushed its advantage to 5-1. DeFusco got one back and Loyola responded with three more scores and an 8-2 advantage. Freshman Sophie Appler scored with 32 seconds left to cut the deficit to five.
• The teams traded scores twice to make it a 10-5 contest, but the Lions found their form with three straight goals to close out the third.
• The teams played out the final frame without much drama. Loyola Marymount edged the Explorers 3-2 in the fourth.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• DeFusco was the team's leading scorer against the #12 team in the nation, tallying a hattrick. She also paced the Explorers in exclusions earned with three.
• The number eight finished with the most points, followed by Kubo (one goal and one assist) and junior Lizzie Nadolski (a team-high two assists).
• Gurasich and fellow rookie Caitlin Valentine split time in net with both goalkeepers tallying five saves.

UP NEXT

• La Salle wraps up its California trip with games against Occidental (1:15 p.m. EST) and Fresno Pacific (5 p.m. EST).