The University of Redlands women's water polo team improved to 3-1 at the Cal Baptist Lancer Invitational No. 2 by recording two wins during Saturday's action in Riverside. The Bulldogs opened up a defensive battle with six unanswered goals to prevail over St. Francis College (NY) in their first outing. During the later contest, the Maroon and Gray never trailed en route to a solid 12-7 victory over the University of La Verne in non-conference action.
With the score tied at two apiece after two frames, Redlands fired off four goals from a quartet of Bulldogs during the third period to take a 6-2 lead over St. Francis. Junior center-defender Deandra Van Houten (Huntington Beach, CA), senior center Jaci Cochrane (San Bernardino, CA), sophomore driver Taylor Christie (Anaheim, CA), and freshman driver Grace Cochran (Danville, CA) each found the back of the net during this critical offensive spurt.
Cochrane finished off the team's impressive run with a pair of scores at the midway point of the final quarter, giving the Bulldogs an 8-2 advantage.
Although St. Francis fired off one netter late in the game, the Maroon and Gray's triumph was never in question.
Senior goalkeeper Julie Lupfer (San Diego, CA) patrolled the Redlands cage, making eight saves in the win.
During the Bulldogs' final game of the Lancer Invitational No. 2, the team used a second-period run to create a slight cushion before out-scoring the Leopards in the final two frames to garner the five-goal win.
While leading 2-1 after the opening stanza, the Bulldogs extended their lead to 5-3 with integral goals by Cochrane, sophomore driver Meg Claypool (Portland, OR), and junior center-defender Tricia Bannister (Naperville, IL). During this stretch, Lupfer stepped up with five saves between the pipes en route to tallying 10 stops on the day.
A back-and-forth battle ensued through the next period but Redlands maintained its advantage, entering the final eight minutes with an 8-5 lead.
The Maroon and Gray finished out the contest with 4-2 run, with Claypool, VanHouten, and freshman center Madison Andres (Princeton, NJ) finding the back of the net.
Redlands (6-10) returns home on Tuesday, March 18, for a non-conference doubleheader at the Thompson Aquatic Center. The Bulldogs kick off the action at 4 p.m. against Connecticut College and then face off against Washington & Jefferson College (PA) at 7 p.m.
