LA JOLLA, Calif. – Three Tritons registered hat tricks as the No. 14 UC San Diego women's water polo team opened its Big West slate with a 16-7 win against No. 23 CSUN Saturday at Canyonview Aquatic Center.
With its third-consecutive victory, UC San Diego improved to 10-8 on the season. The Matadors fell to 14-5 and 0-1 in conference action.
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HOW IT HAPPENED
Caroline Christl, Sofia Munatones, and Cascade Stensland combined for nine of UC San Diego's goals, each finding the back of the net three times. Kendall Thomas scored twice, while Annika Arroyo, Lucia Doak, Abby Moll, Sydney Munatones, and Olivia Seargeant all had single goals.
Sofia Munatones added a pair of assists to finish with five points. Courtney Okumura also totaled five points, all on assists.
Goalie Lexi Stahl racked up 13 saves to go along with three steals and two assists. She was playing in just her second game since returning to action. Stahl missed nine contests after sustaining an injury against Arizona State on Feb. 2.
The Tritons never trailed in the game. Christl netted the first goal of the afternoon on a five-meter penalty shot at the 7:35 mark of the first quarter. CSUN's Anna Pal evened it up with a goal at 7:14 before an Arroyo strike at 6:51 put UC San Diego back in front, where it would stay for the remainder of the game.
Leading 5-3 after the first stanza, the Tritons out-scored the Matadors 5-1 in the second quarter to take a 10-4 advantage into the halftime break. Doak, Christl, and Thomas all scored before Stensland closed out the half with back-to-back goals.
Sofia Munatones picked up where Stensland left off, opening the third quarter with consecutive goals to give the Tritons an eight-goal cushion at 12-4. CSUN scored a pair in the third as Shelby Hovanesian and Helena Sandhagen both put the ball past Stahl during power play opportunities.
UC San Diego had the first two goals of the fourth quarter as well. Seargeant put the Tritons up 13-6 just 22 seconds in and Sofia Munatones followed at 6:21. Sandhagen scored the Matadors' final goal of the game with just over five minutes remaining. UC San Diego scored two more times in the final 4:27 with Moll and Stensland credited with goals.
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GAME HIGHLIGHTS
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WHAT GOALIE LEXI STAHL HAD TO SAY
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TRITON TIDBITS
• The win broke a tie in the all-time series record between UC San Diego and CSUN. The Tritons are now on top 13-12.
• It was the 10th consecutive win for the Tritons against the Matadors.
• The 13 saves were a season-high for
Lexi Stahl.
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Caroline Christl has scored three goals in each of her last four games.
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Courtney Okumura has registered eight assists over her last two games.
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Annika Arroyo has 12 points over her last four games with four goals and eight assists.
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UP NEXT
UC San Diego continues Big West play at UC Irvine on Friday, March 8, at 6 p.m. The Tritons don't play at home again until April 13 when they host Long Beach State.
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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 began a new era in 2020 as a member of The Big West in 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 84 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned 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.
