CLAREMONT, Calif. — In a battle of the top two teams in the nation, it was No. 1 Pomona-Pitzer that came out on top as they defeated No. 2 Cal Lutheran, 7-5, on Wednesday night at Haldeman Pool.
The loss snapped the Regals seven game win streak and dropped them to 10-2 in Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) play and 17-8 overall. The Sagehens remain undefeated in conference play at 11-0 and are 16-11 overall.
Lexi Rond drew five ejections in the game, giving her 91 on the year, for the second most drawn ejections in program history for a season. Whitney Haroldson has the most with 96 which she set in 2007.
The teams were equal after one quarter as the defenses only allowed a combined two goals. Pomona-Pitzer scored on its first possession, but Cal Lutheran evened it up as Nikki Roed scored on a power play opportunity with 6:35 left. Both teams had their chances to score, however, Cal Lutheran's Bailey Meyer and Pomona-Pitzer's goalkeeper made big saves to keep the score even at 1 at the end of the first.
CLU took its first lead of the game as Jessica Diaz scored with 6:46 left in the half. Meyer came up with key saves during the next stretch as the Regals kept the one-point advantage. Cal Lutheran pushed the lead to 3-1 as Mardell Ramirez got in on the scoring fun. Pomona-Pitzer got one-point back, scoring on a power play opportunity with 28 seconds left in the half. Cal Lutheran took a 3-2 lead to the second half as the defenses looked to continue their stellar play.
Pomona-Pitzer tied the game on their first possession of the third quarter and took the lead a few plays later. They scored two more points, to make it four goals in the first three minutes, and had a 5-3 lead. Cal Lutheran stopped the run and scored its first goal of the half as Diaz converted on her second goal. A few minutes later, the Sagehens pushed the lead back to two and made it 6-4 going to the final quarter. Both teams scored one more goal in the fourth, Roed tallied her second for the Regals, and Pomona-Pitzer took the contest with a final score of 7-5.
Meyer and the defense were on fire for three quarters, however, the Sagehens broke through in the third. Meyer tallied 14 saves and added three steals and one assist. Mackenzie Thomas led the defense and tied Meyer with three steals and eight more Regals recorded one.
Points were hard to come by for both teams. Diaz and Roed scored two goals each while Ramirez added another. Rond drew a team high five ejections while Victoria Rose Meek had two.
Cal Lutheran returns home for Senior Day as the Regals host the Chapman Panthers on Saturday at 11 a.m.
Box Score: PP 7, CLU 5
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Release byRyan Jorgenson, Sports Information Director
