SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA – The reigning CCCAA champion Santa Barbara City College Women's Water Polo team continued their excellence in their opening weekend, winning all 4 games at the 2023 Central Coast WWP Invitational at Cuesta College.
On Friday, the Vaqueros beat Golden West 14-5 and West Valley 15-11. The game against West Valley was a rematch of the 2022 CCCAA State Championship Semifinal, of which the Vaqueros won 13-7.
"We had a good day today," head coach Chuckie Roth said. "We were commandingly great on defense and played a fast-tempo water polo pace that made the difference,"
Against Golden West, five different Vaqueros scored 2 goals, and SBCC compiled 9 different goalscorers altogether. Freshman goalie Kate Densmore had a great first showing, notching 15 saves on 20 shots.
In game 2 against West Valley, reigning All-WSC First Team player Claire Daland proved her dominance, scoring 5 goals, leading the team. Lily Carrick scored 3 goals of her own, and Caroline Oates led the team in steals with 3.
On Saturday, SBCC did not let up, beating Cuesta 10-4 and Cerritos 15-3.
"The girls played great today," Roth said. "We learned a lot and were able to work on some different defenses."
The different defensive schemes surely worked, as the Vaqueros allowed just 7 goals across the 2 games, and just 1 or no goals in 7 of the 8 quarters.
In game 1 against Cuesta, Addie Lane led the team with 4 steals, while Lily Carrick and Gabi Turnbull had 3 apiece for a Vaquero defense that had 22 overall.
Against Cerritos, SBCC showed their depth with a whopping 11 different goalscorers, dominating the game and leaving the tournament with a 4-game sweep.
The Vaqueros will try to keep the momentum next weekend, September 15-16, traveling east to Riverside for the 2023 Riverside City College Tournament.
