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UC San Diego

UCSD Upsets No. 18 Long Beach State on the Road

Women's Water Polo UCSD

UCSD Upsets No. 18 Long Beach State on the Road

LONG BEACH, Calif. - The UC San Diego women's water polo team scored all its goals in the first three quarters then held on for a 9-7 upset of No. 18 Long Beach State on Saturday afternoon at Campus Pool.

Katherine Biehle pitched in with three goals and Leah Gonzales scored twice as UCSD (7-3) secured its third consecutive victory. Jessica Tran added three assists while Allie Taylor registered nine saves in the cage.

"We knew after a tough Triton Invitational performance that we really needed a good showing today up at Long Beach. They presented a very tough challenge with a very good two meter game and some great outside shooters," said UCSD head coach Brad Kreutzkamp. "I thought our team responded very well to the challenge and I believe that was the difference."

The Tritons are 3-1 against the 49ers since 2010. LBSU drops to 2-4 overall.

Biehle and Gonzales scored on consecutive possessions to hand UCSD a 2-1 lead with three minutes left in the first. LBSU pulled even early in the second, but Biehle scored with a man-advantage and Melissa Bartow scored the next time down the tank to make it 4-2.

Kirsten Bates added a 6-on-5 goal as the Tritons took a 5-3 lead into the half.

UCSD used a four-goal outburst in the third quarter to put the game out of reach. After the teams traded a pair of scores, Biehle notched her third goal of the game to put the Tritons up 8-5 at the 2:31 mark. Two minutes later, Gonzales drew a penalty and Sarah Lizotte coverted the free shot from five meters to put the Tritons up by four.

LBSU scored on a man-advantage early in the fourth to get within three. However, Taylor and the Triton defense held the 49ers scoreless until Coriann Snyder's goal with 1:26 to play made the final scoreline 9-7.

"Katherine Biehle turned in one of her best performances as a Triton with three goals and a great effort on our counter attack. I was very proud of her effort," said Kreutzkamp.

UCSD and LBSU went 3-for-8 and 3-for-6, respectively, in 6-on-5 situations.

The Tritons' next competition will be the UC Irvine Invitational on Saturday and Sunday, February 25 and 26, at the Anteater Aquatics Complex. UCSD opens against No. 1 Stanford at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday.


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Players Mentioned

Kirsten Bates

#2 Kirsten Bates

2M
5' 11"
Freshman
Allie Taylor

#RS Allie Taylor

GK
5' 6"
Freshman
Jessica Tran

#15 Jessica Tran

ATT
5' 4"
Freshman
Melissa Bartow

#3 Melissa Bartow

CTR
5' 11"
Freshman
Katherine Biehle

#10 Katherine Biehle

DRI
5' 6"
Junior
Leah Gonzales

#13 Leah Gonzales

UTL
5' 6"
Freshman
Sarah Lizotte

#12 Sarah Lizotte

UTL
5' 5"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Kirsten Bates

#2 Kirsten Bates

5' 11"
Freshman
2M
Allie Taylor

#RS Allie Taylor

5' 6"
Freshman
GK
Jessica Tran

#15 Jessica Tran

5' 4"
Freshman
ATT
Melissa Bartow

#3 Melissa Bartow

5' 11"
Freshman
CTR
Katherine Biehle

#10 Katherine Biehle

5' 6"
Junior
DRI
Leah Gonzales

#13 Leah Gonzales

5' 6"
Freshman
UTL
Sarah Lizotte

#12 Sarah Lizotte

5' 5"
Freshman
UTL

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