Sanchez Breaks Big West Scoring Record in Senior Day Loss to Hawai'i

Sunday, April 15

Northridge, CA

12:00 p.m.

California State University at Northridge

#5 Hawai'i

Photo by: Samuel Ware

Sanchez Breaks Big West Scoring Record in Senior Day Loss to Hawai'i

4/15/2018 6:12:00 PM | Women's Water Polo

NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---No. 20 CSUN fell to No. 5 Hawai'i 12-6 on Senior Day Sunday afternoon at Matador Pool. A day after setting a new Matador career scoring record, senior attacker Madeleine Sanchez became the all-time Big West scoring leader with three goals to push her career total to 226.

Honored before the match, the seven-member CSUN senior class all started in their final regular season match of their respective careers as Paula Abellan Garcia, Katelyn Fairchild and Carly Wickman all hit the back of the net. Shannon Hovanesian had two field blocks on the day while fellow senior Amy Yule picked up a steal. In front of the cage, Niki Van Vugt racked up 11 saves.

"Holding No. 5 Hawai'i to a close game was a great battle for us," said head coach Matt Warshaw. "Sanchez breaking the all-time Big West record at home in front of our crowd was a special moment. We've had a tough schedule and are looking forward to some rest and recovery time leading into the Big West Tournament."

The Rainbow Wahine took the early lead in the opening minute as Claire Nixon hit the netting. After Chloe Barr pushed the Hawai'i lead to 2-0, Sanchez put the Matadors on the scoreboard at the 1:34 mark. In the final seconds, the Rainbow Wahine extended their lead to 3-1 on a tally from Elyse Lemay-Lavoie.

CSUN received a pair of quality looks at the net but came up empty early on in the second quarter before Lemay Lavoie hit the net again. On the ensuing possession, Sanchez struck once more, and Abellan Garcia later cashed in on a goal of her own to pull CSUN within 4-3. After Sanchez hit the post, the Rainbow Wahine created some breathing room with a strike from Nixon at the 2:16 mark. Both sides went scoreless for the remainder of the period as the Rainbow Wahine took a 5-3 lead after 16 minutes of action.

The teams continued the back-and-forth affair in the third period. Lemay-Lavoie scored her third goal early on before Fairchild cut the deficit again to two goals. Hawai'i would take control down the stretch of the period, scoring twice and holding CSUN off the scoreboard for the final 6:35. Van Vugt did keep the Matadors within striking distance with a pair of saves in the final minutes.

In the fourth period, Sanchez recorded the hat trick with another goal at the 6:36 mark. However, the Matadors would not get any closer as Hawai'i scored two-straight goals to push the lead to 10-5. Wickman brought the Matadors closer on a looping shot over the defense with 2:24 left to play. Nixon and Lalelei Mata'afa rounded out the scoring for Hawai'i in the final 1:14 of the match.

The Matadors now turn their attention to the Big West Tournament set for April 27-29 at UC Irvine. Seeded sixth in the tournament, the Matadors will either face Long Beach State or UC Irvine in the opening round. The two teams will meet next weekend to wrap up the regular season with the Matadors slotted to face to the winner.

UH - 3-2-3-4 = 12
CSUN - 1-2-1-2 = 6

UH goal scorers: Lemay-Lavoie 4, Nixon 3, Barr 2, Keuning, Mata'afa, Aan
CSUN goal scorers: Sanchez 3 (51), Fairchild (44), Abellan Garcia (21), Wickman (2)

UH saves: N/A
CSUN saves: Van Vugt 11 (192)

(4/16/2018) WWP Senior Day 2018