LONG BEACH, Calif. – No. 19San Diego State water polo began the 2020 season at the Beach Invitational with a split of its two games on Saturday at Long Beach State's Ken Lindgren Aquatics Center. The Aztecs pounded the La Verne Leopards 18-5 but lost to No. 15 Long Beach State 10-9 on a last second goal.
No. 19 San Diego State 18, La Verne 5
San Diego State jumped on the Leopards early and never looked back in a 13-goal victory on Saturday afternoon. The Aztecs scored seven times in the first period and was up 10-0 in the second before La Verne got on the scoreboard.
Maddy Parenteau opened the scoring at the 6:18 mark and was followed by an Emily Bennett tally with 5:50 to go in the opening eight minutes. Karli Canale scored with 5:11 left to make it 3-0.
Parenteau struck again at 4:36 after which Sydney Hurst and Spencer Samuel found the back of the cage at 2:06 and 0:54, respectively to make it 7-0 after one period.
In the second quarter, Haley Hagerty scored at the 7:37 mark; Izzy Hastings got on the scoresheet 15 seconds later and Bennett got her second goal with 6:34 to go before the half to make it 10-0.
A La Verne goal made it 10-1, but the Aztecs offense responded with six of the next seven goals before the intermission.
Hagerty picked up her second goal of the game at the 5:44 mark and was followed by a Dayna Bond tally with 4:19 left in the period. A La Verne goal with 3:59 to go made it 12-2 and in the final 3:01 of the period Maddie Higginson, Jessica Leckich, Hastings, and Bond all scored and the Aztecs led 16-2 heading into the break.
SDSU scored once in the third period, on Samuel's second goal of the game, while La Verne matched the Aztecs with a goal of its own to make it 17-3 heading into the final period.
In the fourth, Higginson tallied her second goal of the game, sandwiched around a pair of Leopard goals for the final score of 18-5.
In addition to Hastings two goals, she assisted on five others, which equals the second highest assist total in a game in San Diego State history. She is the 17th player in program history to total five assists in a game and the first since Anique Hermann accomplished it against Fresno Pacific on March 29, 2014.
Jordann Heimback and Grace Halliday split time in goal. Heimback, who played in the first half, had five saves and Halliday stopped three shots playing the third and fourth quarters.
SDSU improves to 2-0 all-time against La Verne.
No. 15 Long Beach State 10, No. 19 San Diego State 9
In the first game of the day, the Aztecs scored six times in the fourth quarter to erase a five-goal deficit but fell on a penalty shot with 41 seconds to play which broke a 9-9 tie. SDSU has a chance to tie the game but a shot by Shelby Kraft hit the post and the Beach escaped with the one-point victory.
Trailing 8-3 entering the fourth quarter, the Aztecs scored four times in just under two and a half minutes. Emily Bennett, scoring the second of her two goals in the game, got the run started with a power-play goal with 5:52 to play. Casia Morrison got a power play goal just under a minute later to make it 8-5.
Thirty second after Morrison's tally, Karli Canale scored to make it 8-6 and a minute later senior Maddy Parenteau found the back to the cage to get SDSU to within a goal at 8-7.
The Beach responded with a goal at the 3:06 mark to push its advantage back to two, 9-7. Canale got her second goal of the quarter with 2:10 left to narrow the margin back to a lone goal and after Kraft scored with 1:25 to play the game was tied 9-9.
Following a Shelby Kraft exclusion with 41 seconds to go, LBSU's Orsi Hertzka scored on a penalty shot to put the Beach back in front 10-9, which would be the final score.
Long Beach State jumped on SDSU with a 3-0 lead after the first eight minutes. The Aztecs took 10 shots in the period but failed to crack the defense of LBSU.
With 5:59 to play in the second, the Beach added another goal to make it 4-0, but just over 30 seconds later Bennett got the Aztecs on the board. Long Beach State picked up two more goals to make it 6-1 before Maddie Higginson pulled the Aztecs to within 6-2 with a goal with 1:40 before intermission, which was the score at the half.
In the third quarter, Long Beach State got two goals sandwiched around a Morrison power play tally at the 6:34 mark and took an 8-3 lead into the final eight minutes.
Zoe Morgan went the entire game in goal and recorded four saves.
San Diego State leads Long Beach State 26-17 in the all-time series.
No. 15 Long Beach State 10, No. 19 San Diego State 9
2020 Beach Invitational | Jan. 25, 2020 | Ken Lindgren Aquatics Center | Long Beach, Calif.
SDSU: 0-2-1-6—9
LBSU: 3-3-2-2—10
SDSU Goals: Emily Bennett 2, Karli Canale 2, Casia Morrison 2, Maddie Higginson 1, Shelby Kraft 1, Maddy Parenteau 1
LBSU Goals: Sarah Barker 3, Elena Kotanchyan 3, Orsi Hertzka 2, Olivia Grim 1, Gabriella Matafora-Adams 1
SDSU Saves: Zoe Morgan 4
LBSU Saves: Eirini Patra 12
No. 19 San Diego State 18, La Verne 5
2020 Beach Invitational | Jan. 25, 2020 | Ken Lindgren Aquatics Center | Long Beach, Calif.
SDSU: 7-9-1-1—18
La Verne: 0-2-1-2—5
SDSU Goals: Emily Bennett 2, Dayna Bond 2, Haley Hagerty 2, Izzy Hastings 2, Maddie Higginson 2, Jessica Leckich 2, Casia Morrison 2, Maddy Parenteau 2, Spencer Samuel 2, Karli Canale 1, Sydney Hurst 1,
La Verne Goals: Emilie Eastman 2, Nanea Mattson 1, Sage Nowell 1, Sumi Rudisky 1
SDSU Saves: Jordann Heimback 5, Grace Halliday 3
La Verne Saves: Shelby Garcia 5
-SDSU-