April 24, 2015
STOCKTON, Calif. - The top-seeded San Diego State water polo team received hat tricks from three players on Friday en route to an 11-6 triumph over No. 5 seed California Baptist in the semifinal round of the Golden Coast Conference tournament at Chris Kjeldsen Pool on the University of the Pacific campus.
With the victory, the Aztecs (17-14) advance to Saturday's championship where they will battle third-seeded Loyola Marymount beginning at 2:30 p.m. PT. The Lions (21-11) punched their ticket to the finals after claiming a 6-3 decision over host school Pacific in the other semifinal matchup.
SDSU was paced by the triumvirate of junior Ioli Benekou (Marousi, Greece), fellow classmate Taylor Gums (Lodi, Calif.) and sophomore Caroline Israels (Pompano Beach, Fla.), who each dented the scoreboard on three occasions to help the 16th-ranked Aztecs reach the GCC title game for the second year in a row.
The SDSU cause was also aided by junior goalkeeper Rachel Mitchell (Danville, Calif.), who came up with 11 clutch saves before giving way to senior Emily Tylka (Mundelein, Ill.) late in the fourth quarter.
The Aztecs pounced on the Lancers (20-14) early, scoring three goals in the first period on strikes by Benekou, Israels and Gums, respectively, to build a 3-0 lead they would not relinquish.
CBU finally broke through with a pair of scores in the second stanza as a Courtney Menard shot midway the quarter hit the right post and deflected in, while Valerie Spezzaferri's attempt during a 6-on-5 opportunity found daylight in the upper right-hand corner of the cage with just 41 seconds left before intermission.
Nursing a slim 3-2 halftime advantage on the heels of a 10-minute scoring drought, SDSU quickly seized momentum in the opening moments of the third quarter when Israels struck for a pair of tallies 71 seconds apart to complete her sixth hat trick of the year and give the Scarlet and Black a 5-2 cushion.
The Lancers responded with a Spezzaferri's second goal of the game at the 6:17 mark. However, the Aztecs increased the margin to 7-3 in the final 1:29 of the period after Benekou skipped the ball into the net on a penalty shot, while Alyssa Diacono (Ladera Ranch, Calif.) broke through for a score, chasing CBU goalkeeper Meghan Rowland. The Lancers had a chance to narrow the gap on a penalty shot of their own at the end of the quarter, but Hannah Evans' attempt hit the post.
Buoyed by its good fortune, SDSU upped its advantage to 9-3 in the first three minutes of the fourth period on Benkou's third tally of the contest, while senior Carina Carballo (Mexico City, Mexico) soon followed with the Aztecs' first power-play goal of the afternoon.
The Lancers threw one last scare into SDSU's party, scoring three straight goals within a 45-second span, including two by Evans, which trimmed the margin to 9-6. However, the Aztecs withstood the challenge as Gums registered two tallies on back-to-back possessions with just under two minutes remaining to give the contest its final outcome.
Saturday's title game represents the third meeting between San Diego State and LMU. The Lions escaped with a 5-4 decision at the UCI Invitational on Feb. 22, before the Aztecs rebounded with a 9-8 nail-biter in Los Angeles on March 19.
[1] SAN DIEGO STATE 11, [5] CAL BAPTIST 6Golden Coast Conference SemifinalsChris Kjeldsen Pool; Stockton, Calif.
CBU 0-2-1-3 -- 6SDSU 3-0-4-4 -- 11
SDSU GoalsBenekou 3, Gums 3, Israels 3, Carballo 1, Diacono 1
CBU GoalsEvans 2, Spezzaferri 2, Castellano 1, Menard 1
SDSU SavesMitchell 11, Tylka 1
CBU SavesRowland 5, Perez 0