March 18, 2006
Santa Clara, Calif. - With a loud and boisterous crowd behind them, the Santa Clara women's water polo team upset No. 18 Princeton this afternoon at the Leavey Center Pool by a score of 12-4 and then proceeded to dismantle Cal State Monterey Bay 17-6 just a few hours later. As a result of winning the Santa Clara Student Athlete Canned Food Drive, the women's water polo team was treated to a cheering contingent of Santa Clara athletes, as representatives of all the varsity sports at SCU was mandated to attend the first game of the doubleheader. The additional enthusiasm was not lost on the team, as they responded by thoroughly outplaying their East Coast counterparts.
"This was our first home game this year against a ranked team and having a big crowd really adds energy to the game and our players definitely feed off of that," stated an excited Keith Wilbur, the head coach of the Broncos. "The student athletes at Santa Clara have a mutual respect for one another so having them all cheering for the team really made us want to play well in front of them."
Santa Clara improves its record in 2006 to 13-6 and will return to action on March 29, with a home game against Brown. Game time is set for 1 p.m.
Leading the way in the 12-4 triumph over the Tigers was Katie Radvanyi, who netted four goals on the afternoon, followed by Lindsey Bacolini who had 2 goals. Emily Bonk, Kendal Hildebrand, Amy Lamb, Claire Linney, Christie Miller, and Mele Rehder each found the back of the net once. Lamb also had an easy time finding open teammates, as she wound up with four assists in the winning effort. Kristin Barnes had an excellent outing in the cage, tallying 12 blocks and two steals.
"It was our best game of the year. Everything came together," stated Wilbur. "We came out hard to begin with. We played great defense and was really smart on offense. We converted on a high percentage of our 6-on-5's, which is what we've been working on in practice."
Following such an exciting victory, many teams would have trouble concentrating on another match just hours in the horizon, but Wilbur was able to get his team to focus on their next opponent and got a positive result in the 17-6 rout of the Otters. Radvanyi had the hot hand, as she once again accounted for four goals in the game. Linney was able to match Radvanyi in the second game, with four goals as well, while Elizabeth Perry and Amy Lamb each fired 2 goals for the Broncos. Brianna Anderson, Bryn Asher, Bonk, Allie Lamb, and Miller each tacked on a goal. Allie Lamb, Radvanyi, and Simpkins also each totaled three assists on the afternoon. In the goalie spot, Katie Gilmartin and Barnes split playing time, as they both combined for seven blocks.
"On defense, we executed well, with our press and counterattack. Our team did a great job of staying mentally tough after playing such a big match a few hours earlier," said Wilbur.
