SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA – The SBCC women's water polo team defeated Citrus 20-9 in Friday's WSC Tournament semifinals at Cuesta, moving on to face Ventura in tomorrow's championship game at 1:30 p.m.
The Vaqueros are now 26-5 overall in 2022.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Goalscorers: Straley (4), Mancinelli (3), Daland (3), Tal (3), Prado (2), Muehring (2), Olson, Lopez, Turnbull
Saves: McKay (4), Donleavy (7)
The seven-time defending WSC champs used a huge second quarter to pull away and defeat Citrus (16-14) by double-digits for the second time in two meetings this year.
Claire Daland got the Vaqueros out to a good start with two first quarter goals, helping her team to a 3-2 lead through one.
In the following period, SBCC scored nine goals, ending the opening half on an 8-2 run. Eden Tal led the charge scoring all three of her goals in the second quarter. The lead would grow to as large as 12 goals early in the fourth.
Bella Straley led SBCC with four goals, while Natalie Mancinelli and Daland both matched Tal with three. Straley also had a team-high thre assists. Four different Vaqueros finished with at least three steals, led by Mancinelli and Olson with four each.
Goalkeepers Ava Donleavy (7 saves) and Chloe McKay (4) held the opposition to single-digit goals for the third straight game.
NEXT UP
The Vaqueros will face Ventura in the WSC Championship game for the second straight year. In 2021, they defeated the Pirates 15-6 in a game where Eden Tal tied for game-high honors with four goals.
