THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. - To close out the non-conference portion of its 2015 schedule today, the Cal Lutheran women's water polo team hosted another split double header against Connecticut College and St. Francis (N.Y.) at the Samuelson Aquatics Center this afternoon. In a rematch with the Camels, the visiting team got the upper hand, 11-10, in the early game before CLU came back to defeat Division I SFC 16-4.
In the first game of the afternoon, the same two teams that battled yesterday, met again. Although Kaylee Kastrup scored four goals, Gina Merry blocked 15 shots, Tatiana McCuaig grabbed six steals and Logan Young handed out four assists, a goal just before the buzzer put the Camels in the win column.
Kastrup wasted no time putting up a crooked number with a lob shot on the first attempt of the game. She was in the right spot at the right time minutes later to tip in a misfired shot that grazed the fingers of the CC goalie and the crossbar giving CLU a 2-0 lead. Great ball movement helped Kastrup, Sam Wulfestieg and Young pass flawlessly to Lauren Shackelford who capped off the play with the third d goal and broke a 2-2 tie late in the opening frame.
The second stanza saw Connecticut College score a trio of unanswered goals to take a 5-3 lead at the 5:03 mark. Kastrup quickly fired off another to cut the deficit to one. McCuaig nabbed a steal, sprinted the ball down the pool and found an open Amanda Jones for the equalizer. On the ensuing possession Jordan Card connected and gave the Regals back the upper hand at 7-6 going into the break.
Consecutive goals from the Camels changed the leader again early in the third quarter and McCuaig added the only goal of the period for CLU to send the teams into the final eight minutes still separated by one at 9-8.
Shackelford used a man-up situation to net the first CLU score of the fourth quarter and the resilient Regals continued to chip away until Maggie Kurzeka equalized the game at 11-11 with 2:09 to play. Over the final minute of regulation things got intense. McCuaig earned a steal, which led to a time out. As the Regals were unable to generate the look they wanted, CLU burned another timeout, but with just one second remaining on the shot clock. CC blocked the three-quarter-pool-length shot and with Merry out of the cage to aid on the previous play, the net was wide open for the game-winning shot.
Hours later the CLU squad dove back in and came out fired up with great passes, communication and poise as Kastrup scored a game-high five goals and Shackelford added a team-leading four steals with a trio of goals. Young handed out a season-best six assists while McCuaig came up with a trio of field blocks and Merry notched nine more saves.
VIDEO - https://youtu.be/wcFLRXlHD8c
To start things off, Card, Shackelford and Kastrup each found the back of the net to open a 3-0 lead after the first period.
Merry made a huge save to start the second and Cal Lutheran kept SFC off the board for two more minutes until they finally added a crooked number. The defense shined and the Regals stepped up on a man-down situation before Kastrup opened the gap to 5-1 on consecutive scores. After SFC scored, Kurzeka earned and converted a five-meter opportunity for a 6-2 lead that held going into halftime.
The Regals cruised through the second half, tacking on five goals in the third with a pair from Kastrup, and one apiece from Jones, McCuaig and Shackelford to add to the cushion, 11-4, entering the final period of non-league play in 2015. In the fourth frame, they teamed up for five goals from Shackelford, Wulfestieg twice, Erin Cunefare and Bailey Likewise en route to the win.
Earlier in the day St. Francis defeated Connecticut College 4-2 in a very low scoring game.
Cal Lutheran (4-12) jumps back in the pool nine days from today to open Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) play. The Regals will host Chapman on Saturday, March 21 at 11:00 a.m. inside of the Samuelson Aquatics Center.
Box Scores: CLU 16, SFC 4
Box Scores: CC 11, CLU 10
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