March 10, 2009

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – The Cal State Monterey Bay women's water polo team competed in a very competitive three-day schedule at the Cal Lutheran Spring Classic on March 6-8, finishing with three victories.

The Otters feel 11-6 to No. 5 San Diego State in their opening game before rebounding with a 7-5 victory over Mercyhurst (PA).  CSUMB competed against two NCAA Division III ranked teams on Saturday, taking a 12-6 decision over No. 8 Chapman and falling 13-12 to No. 1 Pomona Pitzer.  After dropping their first game on Sunday, 12-5, to No. 12 Cal State Northridge, the Otters ended the tournament on a high note with a 7-6 victory over DIII No. 7 Occidental.

For the weekend, CSUMB was led by sophomore #Nikki Smart# who accumulated 14 goals in the six games. Sophomore #Chloe McRae# finished with 10 goals and seven assists. Senior #Mandy Enriquez# and junior #Lauren Scholz# each added five goals.

Sophomore #Kristen Prosser# had 29 saves and freshman #Shelby Carrillo# stopped 12 shots over the weekend.

“A very productive weekend with good close games,” said Otters head coach Gary Figueroa. “We learned from the officiating and the team stepped up by playing with intensity.

“We are looking forward to playing against University of Notre Dame, one of the top club teams in the country, and have two important games this weekend against Santa Clara and Cal State East Bay.” 

The Otters (6-19) hosts University of Notre Dame on Thursday, March 12, at the Otter Aquatics Center with a 2 p.m. start time.