Women’s Water Polo Goes 4-0 in Long Beach Tournament

The Riverside City College women's water polo team has had one on the strongest months of competition thus far. After dropping just one game in the month of September, the Tigers have mirrored their previous month's success and look to make a serious push in playoff action. They continued to cruise through play this past weekend by going undefeated in the Long Beach City College Tournament while defeating Saddleback, San Joaquin Delta, Sierra, and Orange Coast.

Game One - Saddleback vs. Riverside

The Tigers saw their largest offensive output come in the opening game of the tournament by defeating the Gauchos 19-4. It was a solid contest after the first quarter with the score knotted at two-all, but the Tigers went on a 17-2 run in the following three frames leading to the victory.

Leading the charge was a duo consisting of sophomore driver Anay Ramirez (Riverside, CA) and freshman attacker Katy Peterson (Menifee, CA). They each fired home three scores while Ramirez chipped in two steals.

The defense was on point as the Tigers pocketed a total of 20 steals. Freshman attacker Nikkol Webber (Riverside, CA) protected their end of the pool with five steals. Six other player swiped a pair of steals as well.

A good portion of the offense funneled through the vision of freshman attacker Caelan Loroff (Calgary, AB). She dished out a game-high four assists.  Freshman goalkeepers Katelin Simonson (Magna, UT) and Breanna Ortiz (Fontana, CA) handled the duties in the cage. Simonson recorded seven saves, while Ortiz notched a pair.

Game Two - San Joaquin Delta vs. Riverside

The Tigers faced off against San Joaquin Delta for the fourth time this season after holding a 2-1 record against them. The Tigers rode a five-goal second half to distance themselves en route to a 10-7 victory.

Freshman center Kate Fox (Murrieta, CA) led the charge by accounting for half of Riverside's goals. She netted five scored which is one goal shy of her season-high mark. Sophomore Josceline Godinez (Menifee, CA) led the team in assists with three. She also held down the defensive initiatives with five steals. She added a goal as well.

Webber put together a well-rounded contest after drawing three ejections, firing home a score, and recording two steals.

Game Three – Sierra vs. Riverside

After two slow starts on Friday, the Tigers jumped out to an early 4-1 lead and never looked back despite winning by just one score.

Peterson led the strike by humming home four goals which is one goal shy of her season high mark. Ramirez followed with three goals, backed by two scores from Loroff.

Godinez displayed strong vision once again by dishing out a game-high three assists.  Fox and sophomore attacker Megan Upton (Corona, CA) recorded two assists each.

Game Four – Orange Coast vs. Riverside

The Tigers capped off the series with a strong game against Orange Empire Conference (OEC) foe Orange Coast. After falling to them in conference play earlier this month, the Tigers rebounded nicely to defeat them by the final score of 9-8.

Freshman goalkeeper Hannah McCarley (Riverside, CA) played very well in the cage by recording seven saves in four quarters of action. Her strong defense transitioned into great offense for the Tigers.

Peterson continued to helm the offense by netting a game-high four goals. Ramirez backed her with three scores.

Loroff was a large factor by firing home two goals and adding one assist. Fox and Upton added two assists as well.

The Tigers (20-2, 4-1 OEC) are currently riding a six game winning streak and have been victorious in 11 of their last 12 games. They will cap off regular season and conference play this Wednesday, October 25^th against Golden West College on the road.