BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – Fresno Pacific (1-9) had a solid weekend of water polo as they played stronger in their rematch to Colorado State despite a 3-11 loss, and went to sudden death with CSU East Bay. Unfortunately, the Sunbirds did not come out on top losing 17-18, going 0-2 on the weekend.
The Sunbirds had previously lost to Colorado State 7-18, but managed to hold Colorado State to only 11 goals this time around. Coach Brian Suhovy commented, “The girls definitely played better; they were more confident having already faced them last weekend and at a normal altitude.”
Yulia Blinovskya, Brittany Guerrero and Borbala Toth each scored a goal apiece, while Katie Cole had 13 saves, three more than their previous meeting.
The Sunbirds second game was more thrilling going into extra periods. At halftime the Sunbirds were down by five goals, but rallied back in the second half. In the last minute of the fourth quarter, Toth scored a top-corner goal from half court to tie the game, sending it into overtime. After both teams went scoreless in the two overtime periods, the game went to sudden death. Unfortunately, East Bay managed to score first to end the game.
Toth led the way with six goals, while Guerrero and Blinovskya each had four goals of their own. Jenny Diebert, Deborah Wall and Jen Wolter each put in one of the remaining three goals. Cole continued to play well with 18 saves, totaling 31 for the tournament.
Coach Suhovy continued, “The girls played hard. We were proud of how they played, and they were proud of themselves.”
The Sunbirds will return home next weekend to take on Cal Baptist. The game will take place on Saturday, February 21 at Sunnyside High School. The first sprint is scheduled for 4:00 p.m.