| Women’s Water Polo |
|---|
| Harvard — 5 |
| UCLA — 15 |
No. 2 UCLA women’s water polo (21-4, 4-2 MPSF) put on another dominating performance over No. 11 Harvard (26-4, 5-1 MPSF), 15-5, in quarterfinals of the National Collegiate Championship this Friday at the Canyonview Aquatic Center in La Jolla, California.
UCLA’s impressive offensive was led by senior attacker Taylor Smith, who contributed four goals to the astounding total.
The Bruins were unstoppable from the start, scoring four goals in the first quarter alone. Major contributions came from redshirt senior attacker Emma Lineback and senior utility Anna Pearson, who would also put up multiple goals throughout the game.
UCLA held a strong two goal lead into the second quarter.
The momentum did not stop there. Smith helped the Bruins kick off the second with two goals back-to-back, taking advantage of an exclusion. Soon, UCLA held a significant lead after outscoring the Crimson by three goals in one period leaving it, 8-3.
Towards the end of the quarter, things got heated. A yellow card was given on the Harvard side.
However, this did not hinder UCLA’s performance. Lineback and Smith were on fire, kicking off the second half with another two goals, with help from sophomore attacker Tali Stryker and senior center Bia Mantellato.
Another four goal quarter for UCLA. Harvard could only respond with two goals, including a successful shot in the last few seconds. It was now 12-5.
It seemed like the game was pulling away from the Crimson.
In the last quarter, UCLA was able to cap off their stellar performance with another three goals. In return, Harvard couldn’t seem to find a response. A great defensive effort held Harvard scoreless in the last quarter.
UCLA will now move onto the semifinals of the NCAA women’s waterpolo tournament. They will face USC, which will take place at 6:00 p.m. PST on Saturday, April 25 at the Canyonview Aquatic Center in La Jolla, CA.
