Matadors Defeat Azusa Pacific, Fall to CSU Bakersfield

NORTHRIDGE, CA---

No. 25 CSUN Water Polo earned a split on Saturday in its two matches at Azusa Pacific. The Matadors cruised to a 14-2 victory against the host Cougars in the morning match and fell to No. 24 CSU Bakersfield in a close 10-8 decision. Both Amy Yule and McKenzie Pollei scored five goals on the day while Emily Fuller, Katelyn Fairchild and Lindsey Garcia each had three.

The Matadors led from start-to-finish in their match against Azusa Pacific. The two teams went scoreless through the halfway point of the first quarter until Madeleine Sanchez hit the net for CSUN with 3:34 left in the period. Her goal would spark a CSUN run to end the quarter as Pollei, Fairchild and Miranda Coleman each tallied goals to give the Matadors a 4-0 edge.

In the second period, the Matadors kept applying the pressure on the offensive end, quickly adding to their lead in the opening minutes. Yule connected on two goals within a 1:16 span and Pollei scored again to make it 7-0. The Matador team captain Pollei recorded a hat trick with another goal at the 4:23 mark of the period and CSUN added goals from Fuller, Fairchild and Shannon Hovanesian to push the lead to double-digits. With 00:08 to play before halftime, Yule recorded her third tally of the quarter to give CSUN a sizeable 11-0 edge.

CSUN's defense proved to be stifling throughout the match, as the Cougars were held scoreless through the entire first half. After intermission, the CSUN defense kept frustrating APU, holding the Cougars scoreless for the third straight period. Goalkeeper Niki Van Vugt anchored the defense with strong play in front of the cage, saving nine in the contest.

Fuller notched her second tally of the match in the third and Garcia recorded a pair in the fourth. Azusa Pacific scored twice in the final 2:11 to break up the shutout, ending CSUN's string of over 29:00 without giving up a goal.

Sanchez led the team with three assists while Hovanesian and Fairchild each had two. Hovanesian also had five steals in the win.

CSUN: 4-7-1-2 = 14
APU: 0-0-0-2 = 2

CSUN Goal Scorers: Yule 3, Pollei 3, Fairchild 2, Garcia 2, Fuller 2, Sanchez, Coleman
APU Goal Scorers: Espinar, Harris

CSUN GK Saves: Van Vugt 9
APU GK Saves: Margot 6

In the afternoon match, the Roadrunners charged out of the gate fast, scoring the first three tallies of the contest to lead 3-0. The Matadors fought back, however, with goals from Fairchild and Garcia to trim the deficit to 3-2 before the end of the first.

The teams fought back-and-forth in the second as Bakersfield scored twice to go up 5-2 before Pollei hit the netting to bring CSUN to within two. CSUB quickly answered back with a goal to lead 6-3 with 3:20 left before halftime.

The contest remained a three-goal game into the third period as neither side could push through a tally until Fuller connected on a goal at the 2:46 mark of the quarter. Pollei registered her second goal of the game less than a minute later to cut the lead to one.

The seesaw battle continued as Bakersfield added a goal at the end of the third and went up 8-5 in the fourth on a goal from Ashley Paz. CSUB built a 9-5 lead with 3:47 left to play before CSUN mounted one last charge.

As she did earlier in the day, Yule scored back-to-back goals to trim the lead to 9-7 with 1:46 left to go and Coleman connected on another tally just 00:34 later.

CSUN looked for the equalizer in the final seconds but the Matadors would come up short in the waning moments of the match. CSUB added a late insurance goal to seal the victory.

Fairchild led the way with four assists and four steals against Bakersfield while Pollei had three steals and two assists. Van Vugt posted six saves for CSUN.

The Matadors are back in action on Sunday as CSUN takes on UC San Diego in its home opener of 2016. The match is scheduled for a 12 p.m. start time.

CSUN: 2-1-2-3 = 8
CSUB: 3-3-1-3 = 10

CSUN Goal Scorers: Yule 2, Pollei 2, Coleman, Fairchild, Garcia, Fuller
CSUB Goal Scorers: Jensen 2, De Leon 2, Barrett 2, Paz 2, Wulf, Versfeld

CSUN GK Saves: Van Vugt 6
CSUB GK Saves: Wahlstrom 10

Matadors Defeat Azusa Pacific, Fall to CSU Bakersfield

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Players Mentioned

Miranda Coleman

Katelyn Fairchild

Emily Fuller

Lindsey Garcia

Shannon Hovanesian

McKenzie Pollei

Madeleine Sanchez

Niki Van Vugt

Amy Yule