SBCC won two games on Thursday to advance to the championship game in the WSC Women's Water Polo Tournament at Cuesta in San Luis Obispo. The top-seeded Vaqueros beat No. 8 Santa Monica 11-4 and No. 5 Citrus 21-7.
Sophomore attacker Addison Seale tallied a season-high seven goals, four assists and four steals vs. Citrus and the 21 goals were also a season best. Gabrielle Ritter added a season-high six goals and Halie Johnson had three goals, four assists and four steals.
The Vaqueros (28-1, 9-0 WSC) won their fifth straight game. They'll be seeking their third straight conference title when they take on No. 2 Ventura on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. at Cuesta. Ventura topped Hancock 18-7 in the other semifinal.
Citrus (22-10, 5-4) came in hot with six straight wins and 11 of its last 12. The Vaqueros jumped ahead 6-2 after a quarter and 11-3 at the half. Seale scored three goals in the third period and SBCC stretched the lead to 17-4 lead on a goal by Ritter with 1:59 to go in the third quarter.
"It was a great day for our team," said coach Chuckie Roth. "We came together and played an amazing defensive and offensive game. Charissa Dorn was a highlight, starting in place of Ivanna Bilaver, who was sick. Dorn did a great job defending the 2-meter position.
"Freshman Natalie Beck played a fantastic first game and scored two goals in each game."
All-American goalie Mackenzie Richards stopped 10 shots in the semifinal and improved to 24-1 on the year.
The Vaqueros got two goals from five players in the opener and Johnson had a goal and four assists. Victoria Bruno (4-0) got the win in goal, stopping seven shots. Ivanna Bilaver, Gabrielle Ritter and Nicole Cosares didn't play vs. Santa Monica due to illness or injuries.
Santa Monica …..…... 1 1 2 0 -- 4
SBCC ………….…......…. 4 4 0 3 -- 11
Goals – SBCC: Seale 2, Carr 2, Talkin 2, Mroz 2, Beck 2, Johnson 1. Goalie saves – SB: Bruno 7.
Citrus ………….…..… 2 1 1 3 -- 7
SBCC …….……..….…. 6 5 6 4 -- 21
Goals – SBCC: Seale 7, Ritter 6, Johnson 3, Carr 2, Beck 2, Mroz 1. Goalie saves – SB: Richards 10, Bruno 1.
