HONOLULU – In the first game of the Big West Conference tournament Thursday, the No. 12 UC San Diego women's water polo team (20-10, 3-3 BWC) hung on to take down 11th-ranked UC Davis (16-12, 3-3 BWC) in double overtime by a final score of 12-11 thanks to a game-winning power-play goal from
Annika Arroyo. This is the first-ever Big West Conference tournament win for the team.
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HOW IT HAPPENED
Early on, the Tritons struggled to contain the Aggies offensively. UC Davis scored three consecutive goals to begin the match, but with two seconds remaining in the first period,
Taylor Onstott netted a power play goal for UC San Diego to cut the deficit to 3-1 heading into the start of the second period.
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The Tritons would continue to find success in the second period, with
Holly Maine,
Annika Arroyo, and
Courtney Okumura each scoring to give UC San Diego four goals in the period, tying the score at 5-5 heading into half time.
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Okumura kept the pressure up for the Tritons to begin the second half, netting her second goal of the match to give UC San Diego its first lead of the game with a lob shot to make it 6-5. Alyssa Lengtat would immediately tie the score for UC Davis though, and the two teams continued to trade goals throughout the third period, with a key field block from
Lucia Doak helping the Tritons maintain momentum. After Okumura netted her fourth goal of the match, Noelle Wijnbelt kept the match tied at 8-8 heading into the final regulation period.
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In the fourth period, Onstott and Arroyo each scored once again for the Tritons, but Wjinbelt and Allyson Clague answered back with goals of their own. With 1:37 remaining in regulation, Doak notched her first goal of the game for UC San Diego with a bar-in score, but a redirected shot from Emily Aikema of UC Davis with 25 seconds remaining tied the game once more at 11-11.
Ciara Franke sent in a lob shot from far outside to try and give the Tritons a win in regulation, but a save from Nellie McAdams sent the match into overtime.
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The first period of overtime saw no goals for either side, with two saves from
Bennett Bugelli and a field block from Franke helping UC San Diego maintain a blank scorecard. In the second overtime period, neither team was able to convert until the final seconds of the match. After taking a time out with 28 seconds remaining in the period, the Tritons substituted Arroyo in at goalie to create a 7-on-6 advantage to close out overtime, as they have done to end periods throughout the season. After Julia Hartmann of UC Davis was whistled for an exclusion with six seconds remaining, Arroyo found the back of the net with one second remaining to give UC San Diego the win, her fourth goal of the match.
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QUOTABLE
"We really had to step our game up to play that team, but we worked all week [on] that," said UC San Diego women's water polo head coach
Brad Kreutzkamp. "I'm so proud of our squad for never doubting themselves. Going down 3-0 to that team after we've already lost to them three times is pretty scary, and we didn't back down."
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TRITON TIDBITS
- FOURTH TIME'S THE CHARM – Against UC Davis this season, UC San Diego was winless in three matchups heading into the Big West tournament. At the Triton Invitational on Feb. 13, the Tritons fell 9-7 to the then-No. 10 Aggies. Two weeks later, UC Davis once again bested UC San Diego in an 11-8 win on Feb. 25 at the Barbara Kalbus Invitational at UC Irvine. During Big West play, the Aggies completed the season sweep against the Tritons in a 9-5 win at Canyonview Aquatic Center. The Tritons' last win against the Aggies came on April 10, 2021, in an 11-7 victory during conference play, with Bennett Bugelli recording 11 saves. This was the first time since 2013 that UC San Diego had taken down UC Davis in the pool.
- SHE'S A FRESHMAN! – Freshman Courtney Okumura led the Tritons with four goals in the win against UC Davis, her first postseason collegiate performance. Okumura also led UC San Diego in shots with seven. During the regular season, Okumura had 22 goals and 24 assists, becoming the first player in the Big West era at UC San Diego to lead the team in assists as a freshman. "This could have been some of our seniors' last games," said Okumura, "so I really wanted to play hard for my seniors and give them another game and I didn't want to go home on our first day."
- CAP CHANGE, GAME WINNERS – Annika Arroyo changed from cap number 17 to 1B at the end of the second overtime period coming out of a timeout before going on to score with one second remaining to give the Tritons the win. Against Long Beach State back on March 11 at Canyonview Aquatics Center, Arroyo scored at the end of regulation to give UC San Diego a 10-9 win over their Big West rivals, also wearing the 1B cap.
- RECORD WATCH – Bennett Bugelli recorded nine more saves against UC Davis, bringing her career total up to 815 career saves. In the win over UCSB at the Kalbus Invitational, Bugelli moved up to third all-time, passing Maryam Hadiashar, 697 saves, and Leona Mason, 701 saves. This season, she has already leapt up from ninth place after making 25 saves at the UCSB Winter Invite. Next on the list is Jefi Paulsen with 852 saves.
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| Goalie Saves |
Player Name |
Years Played |
| 1,465 saves |
Courtney Miller |
2013-2016 |
| 852 saves |
Jefi Paulsen |
1987-1990 |
| 815Â saves |
Bennett Bugelli |
2017- Present |
| 701 saves |
Leona Mason |
1993-1996 |
| 697 saves |
Maryam Hadiashar |
1997-2000 |
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-  HISTORY WITH EVERY WIN – With the win over UC Davis, head coach Brad Kreutzkamp moved up to 264 career wins, after already having surpassed his former head coach and mentor Denny Harper earlier this season for the program record.
UP NEXT
No. 12 UC San Diego (20-10, 3-3 BWC) vs No. 4 Hawai'i (15-5, 6-0 BWC)
Friday, April 22 at 2:00 pm PDT
Duke Kahanamoku Aquatic Complex
Live Stats |Â
ESPN+Â |Â
Tournament Page
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About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program has begun a new era as a member of the Big West Conference inÂ
NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 37 have garnered prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.comÂ
or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.
