The University of Redlands women's water polo team made the trek to Thousand Oaks on Wednesday afternoon to square off against the Regals of Cal Lutheran University in an important Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) showdown. Amidst an incredibly tight contest that saw 12 ties, the Bulldogs nabbed an exciting 13-12 triple-overtime victory, with junior attacker Annie Kinney (Newport Beach, CA) firing off the game-winner with just four seconds remaining in the golden-goal period.
After Cal Lutheran gained a one-goal edge at the end of the first and second quarters, Redlands worked to get ahead late in the game. The Bulldogs went up by a score of 8-7 early in the third frame when junior attacker Meg Claypool (Portland, OR) notched her second goal of the day.
The teams traded goals before senior utility player Deandra Van Houten (Huntington Beach, CA) found the back of the net to make it 9-8 with 5:59 left in the fourth stanza.
Another Regal goal knotted the score again, but the excitement continued when junior utility player Caitlyn Freeman (Brentwood, CA) blasted a netter for the Bulldogs' 10-9 lead with three minutes to go in regulation.
But CLU found a way to answer once again, eventually forcing the overtime period to determine the victor.
During the first extra frame, the Regal initiated the advantage on two occasions, but this time Redlands responded to even the count in comeback fashion.
Finally, in the sudden-victory period, Kinney came up with the golden goal for the hard-fought Bulldog triumph.
Overall, Van Houten led the Bulldogs with four goals, while Kinney finished the day with a hat trick. Freeman and Claypool provided two scores apiece, with senior attacker Tricia Bannister (Naperville, IL) and freshman attacker Rachel Haney (Redmond, OR) each adding one.
Junior goalkeeper AC Lopez (Northridge, CA) patrolled the cage for the Maroon and Gray, making eight stops in the intense battle.
Redlands (4-23, 2-4 SCIAC) returns home to the Thompson Aquatic Center on Wednesday, April 15, for a conference match-up against the University of La Verne at 4 p.m.