Matadors Take Two at Cal Lutheran Tourney

NORTHRIDGE, CA---

CSUN Water Polo earned a pair of wire-to-wire victories at Cal Lutheran on Friday afternoon at Samuelson Aquatics Center. The Matadors defeated Cal Lutheran, 13-5, to start the day and CSUN closed Friday with a 14-9 victory over Cal State Monterey Bay. Katelyn Fairchild had another big day in the pool scoring a combined seven goals along with two assists while Madeleine Sanchez had five goals and 10 steals. In the middle, Amy Yule also tallied five goals and Miranda Coleman finished with three. In total, 10 Matadors found the net on the afternoon. Both Niki Van Vugt and Nathalie Brewster each saw action in the cage as they each racked up nine saves apiece.

In the morning game, CSUN and Cal Lutheran battled it out in a close first quarter with three ties. Yule led the way for the Matadors scoring three times, eventually giving CSUN a 3-2 edge at the 3:56 mark. CSUN closed out the period in strong fashion as Fairchild and Sanchez each hit the net to push the lead to three. Cal Lutheran got a goal back right before the buzzer on score from Nicole Roed.

The Matadors would break the game open in the second quarter with quality play on both sides of the pool. Lindsey Garcia, Sanchez and Fairchild all found the net to push the lead to 8-3 with under three minutes left to play. Holding the Regals scoreless for over seven minutes, the Matadors finally gave up a score to Megan Seeman with 50 seconds left before halftime.

CSUN continued to pour it on in the second half, outscoring Cal Lutheran 5-1. In the third, Fairchild netted her third goal while Coleman and Jennalyn Barthels each drove one past the Regal defense. Yule notched her fourth goal of the match just before the end of the third quarter to push the lead to seven. The Matadors shut down the Regals in the fourth quarter, keeping them off the scoreboard for the full eight minutes. Carly Wickman also picked up an insurance goal late in the fourth period.

In the match, Pollei recorded a team-best three assists while Wickman racked up three steals to lead the Matadors.

With momentum on their side, the Matadors took control of their match early with Cal State Monterey Bay. Racing out to a 4-0 lead, CSUN received scoring from Fairchild, Hovanesian and Sanchez. After the Otters fought back with three unanswered goals, CSUN went on a 3-0 run over the final 2:31 of the period to go back in front by four. Fairchild registered her second hat trick of the day in the first quarter alone while Pollei hit the net twice in the final minute.

Ahead 7-3 after one quarter, the Matadors flexed their muscles on the defensive end in the second period. CSUN escaped a pair of power plays in the quarter and held the Otters scoreless over the eight minutes. Yule added to CSUN's lead at the 4:11 mark of the period.

After intermission, Cal State Monterey got back into the game as four-straight goals cut the CSUN lead to 9-7 with 3:33 on the clock. Following a pair of empty possessions, Fairchild hit the net once again to give CSUN a three-goal lead. The Matadors were able to pick up a defensive stop on the other end, and took a 11-7 lead into the fourth quarter after a late goal from Coleman.

CSUN would not let up in the final period, scoring three more times to keep the Otters at bay. Sanchez collected her third goal of the game in the quarter and both Fuller and Coleman scored as well to give CSUN breathing room down the stretch.

Along with her hat trick, Sanchez tallied eight of the team's 18 steals against Cal State Monterey Bay. Yule, Fairchild and Hovanesian all collected two assists in the contest.

CSUN returns to the pool next Saturday (Feb. 11) to compete in the Triton Invitational. The Matadors will take on Big West foe UC Santa Barbara at 12:30 p.m. in the opening round of the tournament.

CSUN - 5-3-4-1 = 13
CLU - 3-1-1-0 = 5

CSUN scorers: Yule 4 (7), Fairchild 3 (19), Sanchez 2 (13), Coleman (4), Garcia (3), Barthels (2), Wickman
CLU scorers: Wulfestieg 2, Seeman 2, Roed

CSUN saves: Van Vugt 4 (64), Brewster 4 (14)
CLU saves: Meyer 10
---------
CSUN - 7-1-3-3 = 14
CSMB - 3-0-4-2 = 9

CSUN scorers: Fairchild 4 (23), Sanchez 3 (16), Coleman 2 (6), Pollei 2 (4), Yule (8), Hovanesian (7), Fuller (2)
CSMB scorers: Aiad 2, Veloso 2, Lovos 2, Wheelock, Tucker, Craft

CSUN saves: Van Vugt 5 (69), Brewster 5 (19)
CSMB saves: Fain 5

Matadors Take Two at Cal Lutheran Tourney

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Players Mentioned

Jennalyn Barthels

Nathalie Brewster

Miranda Coleman

Katelyn Fairchild

Lindsey Garcia

Madeleine Sanchez

Niki Van Vugt

Carly Wickman

Amy Yule