THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — In the pouring rain, Cal Lutheran women's water polo shut down Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 11-4 in a Southern California Intercollegiate Athletics Conference clash on Wednesday afternoon.
The offense and defense combined to put on a show as the Regals moved to 2-0 in SCIAC play and 8-6 overall. CMS is now 2-8 and 0-1 in conference. CLU joins Pomona-Pitzer at 2-0 in the SCIAC.
The last time CLU played CMS was in the semifinals of the SCIAC Tournament in 2018. The Regals won the matchup 6-5 as they advanced to the SCIAC Championship. It is the second straight win for the Regals against the Athenas as CLU took the all-time series lead at 15-14.
CMS got on the board early and scored the first goal of the game. The Regals then answered with four straight goals as they took command of the game. CLU outscored CMS 3-1 in each quarter and had a 6-2 lead at the break. The CLU defense came out in full force in the third quarter and shut down Athenas. The Regals then scored three more goals and had a 9-2 lead heading into the final quarter. The No. 2 team showed their dominance all the way around as Cal Lutheran won the game 11-4 and stayed undefeated in SCIAC play.
Freshman Lexi Rond led the offense with three goals and three drawn ejections. The trio of junior Christin Hirn, junior Victoria Rose Meek and senior Megan Seeman each added two more goals while sophomore Jessica Diaz and freshman Kaitlin Gardhouse each recorded one. Seeman had a team-high two assists while Diaz and Gardhouse each had one.
The offense was 4-for-6 on power play opportunities while holding CMS to 2-of-9. The defense started in the goal as senior Bailey Meyer was in the cage and made 10 key saves. The defense was everywhere as nine Regals recorded at least one steal. Players stepped up anywhere and everywhere as Gardhouse, senior Nicole Guerriero, Hirn and seniors Mardell Ramirez and Nikki Roed each tallied two.
The win over No. 3 CMS gives the No. 2 Regals momentum as they continue to grind through a tough SCIAC schedule. Cal Lutheran hits the road and plays Occidental on Saturday at 11 p.m.
Interview with Lexi Rond and Kaitlin Gardhouse:
Box Score: CLU 11, CMS 4
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Release by Ryan Jorgenson, Sports Information Director
