'Runners Pick up Conference Win; Fall to UC Davis

DAVIS, Calif. - The No. 17 ranked CSUB women's water polo team picked up its 10th victory of the season with a win over Sonoma State, 9-7, on Saturday afternoon at the UC Davis Invitational. In the afternoon session, the Roadrunners fell to No. 11 host UC Davis, 15-4. CSUB is now 10-5 on the year and the win over Sonoma State moves its WWPA record to 4-0.

Against Sonoma State, the 'Runners were led by senior Amanda Ortiz with three goals. Senior Petra Koudelkova added two as the 'Runners held Sonoma State to just three goals in the first three quarters of play. The fourth opened with Ortiz's second goal, giving CSUB a 7-3 advantage. But Sonoma answered right back, scoring four of the next five goals to pull within one with 1:30 to go. Just 11 seconds later, the 'Runners drew a Sonoma State ejection and Ortiz capitalized with a goal at 1:17 to seal the game. Senior Veronica Campbell had 13 blocks in goal for CSUB.

"I thought we played well against Sonoma," Head Coach Jason Gall said. "Our defense played well but it seemed like we just couldn't score. We missed a couple chances late to really breake the game open and they got back into it with some timely shots."

The 'Runners were not quite as fortunate in the second game against host UC Davis. In a rematch from the February 15 thriller at the Hillman Aquatics Center, where Davis won 7-6, expectations were high as CSUB looked to pull off the upset. It was the Aggies however that took control, jumping out to an early 6-0 advantage and never looked back in a 14-5 win. Koudelkova and freshman Kaitlin Torres each scored two goals while Ortiz added one. Campell had six blocks and freshman Megan Wetherbee, who played the last part of the fourth quarter, had three blocks.

"We were a step slow against Davis," said Gall. "This was a real wake up call for us. We will bounce back though and get ready to play tomorrow. Torres had a very good game for us against the Aggies."

CSUB will continue play at the UC Davis Invitational tommorrow with two games. At 10:30 a.m., the 'Runners face WWPA rival Santa Clara. A tough test awaits CSUB in its second game as it takes on No. 1 ranked Stanford at 3 p.m.

"Our team is anxious to play against a team like Stanford," Gall explained. "They want to prove that they can hang with the best team in the country. We need to play strong and smart tomorrow to have a chance."

Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

#1 Veronica Campbell: GK; 6' 1"; Senior

#11 Petra Koudelkova: Utility; 5' 7"; Senior

#4 Amanda Ortiz: 2-Meter; 6' 1"; Senior

#1A Megan Wetherbee: GK; 5' 3"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#1 Veronica Campbell
: 6' 1"; Senior
: GK

#11 Petra Koudelkova
: 5' 7"; Senior
: Utility

#4 Amanda Ortiz
: 6' 1"; Senior
: 2-Meter

#1A Megan Wetherbee
: 5' 3"; Freshman
: GK