RIVERSIDE, Calif. - The No. 6 Fresno State water polo team defeated No. 24 CBU 15-6 in the Bulldogs' third-straight road test on Saturday afternoon. The Bulldogs improve to 9-6 overall and 3-0 in Golden Coast Conference play.
Senior Abbey Simshauser led the Bulldogs with four goals and two assists. In the cage, Ida Tully-Giles had 10 saves and one assist in three quarters of play. Islay Martin-Hill played the final quarter and had four saves.
Brooke Ochoa added three goals, and Hailey Andress, Caitlyn Mossman, Megan Cranley and Kira Anderson added two each.
How it happened
Fresno State took a 1-0 lead as Hailey Andress found the back of the net with 7:14 left in the first quarter. CBU responded a minute later, but Megan Cranley assisted Brooke Ochoa for the goal and the lead. Ochoa extended the lead with a penalty shot, and the teams traded goals to close out the first. Fresno State led 4-2 at the end of the opening quarter.
The Bulldogs opened the second with two unanswered goals, with the first from Cranley on a powerplay opportunity and the second by Abbey Simshauser on a penalty attempt. Just over two minutes passed without a goal by either team, but CBU ended the drought with 4:26 remaining before halftime. Andress hit Simshauser for another goal, and the Lancers were quick to respond again to cut the lead. Simshauser converted another penalty shot goal and Kira Anderson scored with three seconds left before the buzzer to give the Bulldogs a 9-4 lead at halftime.
Cranley opened scoring in the third quarter, off the assist from Anderson, for the Bulldogs' 10th goal of the game. The teams traded possessions in the third, going scoreless until Andress found Ochoa for the goal with 2:51 remaining in the third. That would be all the scoring in the third as the Bulldogs took an 11-4 lead into the final quarter.
CBU scored back-to-back in the fourth quarter, but Simshauser ended the scoring run with credit to Cranley for the assist. Andress scored on the assist from Simshauser, and Caitlyn Mossman got on the board with 1:32 left in the game. Mossman scored again with 28 seconds remaining in the game.
Up Next
Fresno State returns home for the first time in a month, hosting LMU next Saturday at noon. Admission to the Aquatics Center is free.