THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. - For the second time in as many games the Cal Lutheran women's water polo team faced off with a co-Division III leader. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps pulled away in the first quarter and handed CLU a 15-5 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) loss at the Samuelson Aquatics Center this morning.
The Athenas drew first blood with a goal at 5:18 and would never trail during the contest. CMS doubled the lead on its ensuing possession before CLU got on the board midway through the first. Amanda Jones found an open Jordan Card in the center to put up a crooked number. CMS quickly responded with another goal for a 3-1 lead.
In their second of 11 man-up situations in the game the Regals converted with Adrienne Ingalla scoring from six meters out on an assist from Tatiana McCuaig to cut the differential to one at 3-2, but that is as close as things would get.
Netting back-to-back goals, CMS took a 5-2 advantage after the opening eight minutes. Jones nearly netted a skip shot with under a minute to play in the period, but it fell just short. A defensive stand led to a drawn ejection and the Violet and Gold had one more opportunity in the first with eight seconds to go. Hannah Andrews nearly converted, but the ball narrowly missed breaking the plane of the cage as time expired.
In the second stanza the Athenas added a pair, with one five-meter goal to push the lead to 7-2. Ingalla collected a rebound off her own shot at the 1:18 mark and pushed the ball past the CMS goalie for the third CLU goal of the day. Unfortunately, the visiting team would tack on one more to take an 8-3 advantage at the break.
The momentum continued in favor of CMS in the second half with the Athenas tacking on seven goals while Cal Lutheran mustered just two more. Sara Simpson scored the lone goal of the third quarter for CLU on a five-meter shot and Katelyn Dembowski recorded the final scoring play of the day for the Regals on an assist from Kaylee Kastrup.
In addition to her two goals, Ingalla drew three ejections and shared a team-high with two steals. Bailey Likewise, Audrey Neilan and Logan Young also had a pair of steals apiece and Neilan recorded the only field block of the morning. Andrews and Simpson each tallied two drawn ejections with Card, Dembowski, Jones and Kastrup all earning one as well. Gina Merry finished with five saves and a steal.
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (12-11, 4-0 SCIAC) goalie Allison Hu turned away 11 shots and Candace Filippelli single handedly beat the Regals with six goals. A trio of other players had two goals each for CMS.
Cal Lutheran (6-19, 2-3 SCIAC) is on the road Wednesday, April 9 when the Regals travel to Caltech for a 5:00 p.m. first sprint.
Box Score: CMS 15, CLU 5
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