Women's Water Polo | March 13, 2021

PHILADELPHIA – La Salle women's water polo began its season with two wins on Saturday, including a historic overtime win over #21 Bucknell. The victory is the Blue & Gold's first over a nationally ranked team in program history. The Explorers later fell narrowly to the Bison in the second game of the double header before defeating Gannon to cap the day.
 
Senior Madison Martinez led the way for the Explorers with 12 goals and five assists. In the opening game, she managed six goals and five assists for a total of 11 points, breaking the single-game program record.
 
La Salle 20, Bucknell 19
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Bucknell stormed out of the gates with six consecutive scores to take a commanding lead. Sophomore Sophie Appler brought one back for La Salle to finish the first.
• The teams traded goals to start the second to put the score at 8-3.  The Explorers proceeded to outscore the Bison 4-1 to close out the half and narrow the gap to 9-7.
• Four straight goals out of the intermission for La Salle pushed the advantage to the home side, 11-9. Bucknell responded with three of its own, two of which came from senior Kali Hyham, to put the visitors back in front. The lead was short-lived as sophomore Shanna Zuanich answered to tie the score at 12-12.
• The Explorers started the fourth on the front foot, scoring three unanswered to claim the upper hand. The Bison would not go away, however, and three goals from them—including a score with less than 40 seconds remaining—sent the match into overtime.
• The teams went back-and-forth with goals in extra time. Bucknell's Ally Furano struck first, answered by Martinez. The Bison then scored with 27 seconds left on the clock and the game looked over, but junior Madelyn Koerper found the back of the net with 10 seconds remaining to force another period.
• Koerper continued where she left off with a strike to start the sixth quarter of play. Martinez piled on with another goal. With under a minute to play, Hyham gave her father headaches with a brace to level the score. The clock ticked down; Martinez received the ball. She was forced back, screams of "shoot" echoed across the pool and she lobbed the ball up at the buzzer. It floated over the goalkeeper, into the net. Game, La Salle.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Martinez headlined, but there were plenty of performances to highlight.  Koerper finished the game with four goals and two assists. Appler tallied a hattrick and four assists. Senior Sarah DeFusco recorded three goals and an assist, while classmate Karle Linden flipped that with a goal and three assists.
• Appler had a phenomenal all-around day, adding a steal, two kickouts drawn and tying the program record with four blocks in a game. She also won five of the six sprints.
• Linden also finished with a strong defensive line, posting three steals and two blocks.
• Freshman Hannah Woren opened her collegiate account with a goal in the third quarter. She also provided an assist.
• In net, sophomores Emma Gurasich and Caitlin Valentine split time. Gurasich finished with seven saves on 12 shots, tallying an assist and two steals. Valentine had six saves on 13 shots and a steal.
• The Blue & Gold amassed 20 goals on only 32 shots for .625 shot percentage, significantly more efficient than Bucknell's 19 goals on 42 shots (.452).

 
Bucknell 11, La Salle 9
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Hyham opened the scoring with a pair of goals, added onto by Furano and Bucknell had itself a 3-0 start to the second game. Linden responded for the Blue & Gold before Hyham struck again to make it 4-1 to close the first.
• The daughter of La Salle's head coach scored again to begin the second. Martinez answered, followed by two more from the Bison. La Salle's number nine found the back of the net again, parried by Furano and Bucknell led 8-3 at the half.
• It was all Explorers in the third. Martinez (twice) and DeFusco tallied goals, while a sturdy defensive effort blanked the Bison, closing the deficit to 8-6.
• The home side came ever so close in the final frame, coming to within a single score on two occasions. Koerper struck to make it 8-7, Furano extended the lead. DeFusco brought it back and Bucknell's Marcela Herrera extended the advantage, followed by a Furano goal that pushed it to three with less than three minutes remaining. Bucknell battened down, allowing only one more goal to Koerper to finish the game.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Martinez led the way in scoring with four goals. She was joined by DeFusco and Koerper, each of whom had a brace, and Linden with one goal.
• Appler again played the role of defensive enforcer with three blocks and a steal. She also dished out two assists, tied for the team high with DeFusco.
• Linden and Koerper each had all-around games. La Salle's number six added an assist, a steal and two blocks. La Salle's number sixteen finished with two steals, two exclusions earned and a block.
• Gurasich guarded the cage effectively with seven saves on 10 shots. Valentine tallied eight saves on 16 shots.

 
La Salle 13, Gannon 8
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The final game of the day seesawed to start. Martinez and Linden gave the hosts an early lead, brought back by a pair of Gannon goals. Sophomore Sofia Curtis and DeFusco notched goals to push the advantage back to two and the Knights answered with two more to tie the game at 4-4.
• Three minutes went by in the second without any further scoring. Koerper broke the quiet with a goal and Martinez added on a minute later. The Explorers continued to play disciplined defense and didn't allow a goal in the quarter, heading into the half up 6-4.
• The start of the third mirrored the previous period with Koerper again finding  the back of the net to push the Blue & Gold's lead to three. Former Explorer Mary Trese Squeglia got Gannon back to within two, but tallies from sophomore Casey Malone and Koerper extended La Salle's lead to 9-5.
• The Golden Knights started the scoring in the fourth quarter, but La Salle would not surrender its lead. Zuanich, Curtis and Koerper saw to this as the home side's advantage augmented to 12-6. Two Gannon goals on either side of a Zuanich score didn't threaten the final line as La Salle claimed its second victory of the day.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Koerper was the headliner in this match with four goals, two exclusions earned, a steal and a block.
• Spreading the wealth: Koerper and four other Explorers finished with multi-goal games. DeFusco, Martinez, Curtis and Zuanich each tallied two goals.
• A number of those goalscorers also turned provider, as well. DeFusco, Curtis and Zuanich each finished with two assists. Linden, Malone and Woren also matched them with a pair of dishes.
• Linden continued to deny shots left and right, amassing three blocks in this game. She finished with seven on the day, tied for most on the team with Appler.
• The goalkeepers concluded with identical numbers in this match, each recording six saves on 10 shots.

UP NEXT

• The Explorers take on Salem and Mount St. Mary's on Sunday, both neutral site games at Villanova. They'll face the Tigers at 8 a.m. and the Mountaineers at 12 p.m.