Women’s Water Polo Etches First OEC Win

The Riverside City College women's water polo squad hit the road for an Orange Empire Conference (OEC) battle against the Cypress College Chargers. After dropping their conference opener to defending state champion Fullerton, the Tigers rebounded nicely with a commanding 15-4 win.

Riverside controlled the game from start to finish with no issues. They outscored the Chargers 4-2 in the first quarter, blanked them in the second quarter and allowed just two goals the remainder of the contest.

"We are happy to be back," said Head Coach Doug Finfrock. "The athletes are happy and happy to have some normalcy. It has been challenging since we have had only a few days with full roster, but I am proud of the way the girls continue to work hard and fight through adversity. They are going to come out as stronger people because of it."

In every win this season, the Tigers have held their opponent to single digits while netting double-digit totals. It is when their opponents score in the double-digits the Tigers are in trouble.

"We are starting to see things come together. This group has shown that they are talented and coachable. It will be exciting to watch them grow."

On Wednesday afternoon, the Chargers were held to a mere four scores.

The offense shared the wealth with seven players scoring at least one goal and five players scoring two or more goals. Leading the charge was freshman Lauren Nelson with four scores. She has only played three games this season, but has scored two or more netters in each game. Her four goals act as a career high.

Freshman Taylor Mason, who is second on the team with 21 goals, hummed home three goals and has now scored in every game she has played.  She was a menace on the defensive front by pocketing a game-high four steals.

Freshman duo Caleigh Reynoldson and Amber Nielsen each netted two goal with Nielsen leading in assists with three.

Freshman Gabriella Fisher earned the win in the cage after hauling in a pair of saves.

The roster is tattooed with freshman faces as Finfrock and the Tigers worked to transfer their entire roster despite a year plagued by COVID-19.

"This is one year were I am not putting a ton of pressure on the losses," explained Finfrock

"We have been shorthanded, limited to around three substitutions and have had some girls that are playing out of positions because we have been out. I am a strong believer of great defense leads to great offense and that is what we have shown against tough teams despite some outcomes."

Finfrock is looking for leadership and growth with this group of talent. Conference competition is stacked and there is no time to waste.

"Moving forward, we want to focus on how we are playing the game and how we want to play. We need to use every opportunity to get better and be better than when we started."