Saturday, April 12
Santa Barbara, Calif.
12:00 p.m.
California State University at Northridge
16-12 (1-6Big West)
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at
13
#19 UC Santa Barbara
16-11 (2-4Big West)
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2
3
4
OT
OT
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CSUN
4
2
3
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12
UC Santa Barbara
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Photo by: Chuck Marvel
#22 CSUN Falls 13-12 in Overtime Thriller at #19 UCSB
4/12/2025 5:20:00 PM | Women's Water Polo
SANTA BARBARA, Calif.---No. 22 CSUN Water Polo lost a 13-12 heartbreaker to No. 19 UC Santa Barbara in overtime on Saturday. Senior center Dorottya Telek shattered her own single-season scoring record after a six-goal performance while senior Anna Pal had four goals in the 2025 regular season finale. Goalie Erika Staine played the full 38 minutes and totaled 10 saves.
HOW IT HAPPENED
In a game where no team led by more than two goals, the teams traded goals in the opening minute of action before Telek hit the net two-straight times to put CSUN ahead early 3-1. A Gaucho goal from Bella Mady cut the lead in half, but Telek drew a five-meter penalty and hit the net soon after for a 4-2 advantage. UCSB though closed the first quarter with a tally from Annie Kuester to make it a 4-3 game through eight minutes.
The first four minutes of the second quarter went scoreless until Telek added to her scoring tally with another goal. The lead though quickly was erased on a 3-0 UCSB run with Imani Clemons scoring two of those goals. Late in the half, CSUN received a tally from Pal on the power play as the score was 6-6 through one half of action.
The Gauchos pulled ahead again in the third period with two straight tallies before Pal found the net at the 3:53 mark to cut the deficit to 8-7. Clemons gave the Gauchos a 9-7 lead moments later, but CSUN scored twice over the final 2:02 to tie the game again. With a second on the clock, Sandhagen hit the equalizer off a rebound in front of the net to make the score 9-9 heading to the fourth quarter.
CSUN fell behind 10-9 before rallying with a Telek goal at the 4:32 mark. Over the final four minutes of regulation, each side had multiple looks at the net but stingy defense from both teams kept the game tied up at 10-10 after regulation.
The Matadors would reclaim the lead for the first time since the second quarter in the first overtime when Telek scored on a 6-on-5 chance. CSUN protected a 12-11 lead to the final minute of the first overtime, but UCSB found the equalizer on a tally from Isabel Valaika. The match would finally be decided in the second overtime where UCSB pulled ahead on a Clemons goal on a power play before adding another on a Christina Mullane goal. With 1:39 to play, Pal hit the net from deep to pull the Matadors to within 13-12. CSUN would hold the Gauchos scoreless the rest of the way, however, UCSB's defense held firm and secured the one-goal decision.
NOTES OF THE GAME
"No easy days in the Big West. Excellent game plan going into this game that we had to adjust at halftime and we did. Some gutsy performances, but we just didn't hit our shots in overtime. We'll get home and regroup before the Big West tournament."
UP NEXT
With today's result, CSUN will be the No. 7 seed in this season's 2025 Big West Water Polo Championship, set to begin on April 25. The Matadors' opponent will either be Long Beach State or UC Irvine, as those teams will play next Thursday with the winner assured the No. 2 seed and a first-round matchup with CSUN.
#GoMatadors
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HOW IT HAPPENED
In a game where no team led by more than two goals, the teams traded goals in the opening minute of action before Telek hit the net two-straight times to put CSUN ahead early 3-1. A Gaucho goal from Bella Mady cut the lead in half, but Telek drew a five-meter penalty and hit the net soon after for a 4-2 advantage. UCSB though closed the first quarter with a tally from Annie Kuester to make it a 4-3 game through eight minutes.
The first four minutes of the second quarter went scoreless until Telek added to her scoring tally with another goal. The lead though quickly was erased on a 3-0 UCSB run with Imani Clemons scoring two of those goals. Late in the half, CSUN received a tally from Pal on the power play as the score was 6-6 through one half of action.
The Gauchos pulled ahead again in the third period with two straight tallies before Pal found the net at the 3:53 mark to cut the deficit to 8-7. Clemons gave the Gauchos a 9-7 lead moments later, but CSUN scored twice over the final 2:02 to tie the game again. With a second on the clock, Sandhagen hit the equalizer off a rebound in front of the net to make the score 9-9 heading to the fourth quarter.
CSUN fell behind 10-9 before rallying with a Telek goal at the 4:32 mark. Over the final four minutes of regulation, each side had multiple looks at the net but stingy defense from both teams kept the game tied up at 10-10 after regulation.
The Matadors would reclaim the lead for the first time since the second quarter in the first overtime when Telek scored on a 6-on-5 chance. CSUN protected a 12-11 lead to the final minute of the first overtime, but UCSB found the equalizer on a tally from Isabel Valaika. The match would finally be decided in the second overtime where UCSB pulled ahead on a Clemons goal on a power play before adding another on a Christina Mullane goal. With 1:39 to play, Pal hit the net from deep to pull the Matadors to within 13-12. CSUN would hold the Gauchos scoreless the rest of the way, however, UCSB's defense held firm and secured the one-goal decision.
NOTES OF THE GAME
- CSUN concludes the regular season at 16-12 overall and 1-6 in Big West play while UCSB improves to 16-11 overall and 2-4 in conference.
- Telek wraps up the regular year at 104 goals, shattering her previous goal record of 101 set in 2023. She has also now scored 376 career goals.
- Pal's four goals push her career total to 197 while she has 56 on the season.
- Melvin finished with three assists to go with two steals while Tatum Scarry had a goal with two assists.
"No easy days in the Big West. Excellent game plan going into this game that we had to adjust at halftime and we did. Some gutsy performances, but we just didn't hit our shots in overtime. We'll get home and regroup before the Big West tournament."
UP NEXT
With today's result, CSUN will be the No. 7 seed in this season's 2025 Big West Water Polo Championship, set to begin on April 25. The Matadors' opponent will either be Long Beach State or UC Irvine, as those teams will play next Thursday with the winner assured the No. 2 seed and a first-round matchup with CSUN.
#GoMatadors
Â
Team Stats
CSUN
UCSB
Shots
42
42
Goals
12
13
Assists
9
8
Points
21
21
Exclusions
9
11
Steals
9
7
Sprints
3
3
1
Tatum Scarry
7:36
Annie Kuester
7:21
Dorottya Telek
6:09
Dorottya Telek
5:20
Bella Mady
5:00
Dorottya Telek
3:25
Annie Kuester
0:17
2
Dorottya Telek
3:49
Imani Clemons
3:40
Christina Mullane
2:53
Imani Clemons
1:59
Anna Pal
1:32
3
Christina Mullane
5:23
Juju Amaral
4:48
Anna Pal
3:53
Imani Clemons
3:00
Anna Pal
2:02
Helena Sandhagen
0:00
4
Jojo Scheer
7:46
Dorottya Telek
4:32
5
Dorottya Telek
2:36
Isabel Valaika
0:34
6
Imani Clemons
2:33
Christina Mullane
1:55
Anna Pal
1:39
Game Leaders
Players
Shots
9
Goals
6
Assists
0
Points
6
Shots
5
Goals
1
Assists
0
Points
1
Shots
5
Goals
0
Assists
1
Points
1
Players Mentioned
Attacker
/ Women's Water Polo
Goalkeeper
/ Women's Water PoloCenter
/ Women's Water PoloA Conversation With Matt Warshaw
Friday, May 15
National Student-Athlete Day 2019 - McKenzie Beardsley
Friday, April 05
CSUN Water Polo Report
Friday, February 10
Meet the Matadors - 2017 Women's Water Polo
Wednesday, January 18