March 25, 2009


SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- The No. 20 Santa Clara women's water polo team will dive back into action after a bye week. The Broncos (11-10, 6-1 WWPA) will travel to conference rival Sonoma State on Thursday, March 26. Game time is set for 3 p.m. in Rohnert Park, Calif. This will be the first meeting of the season between the conference foes.

"We will play a tough Sonoma State team on Thursday," said head coach Keith Wilbur. "We need to come out and play four strong quarters to have a good result on the road."

Last Time Out
The Broncos, who have not played since March 15, have remained in the national polls at No. 20 since March 12. In their last time out, SCU went 2-1 at home. They defeated CSU Monterey Bay 13-6 on March 14. Behind senior captain Claire Linney, who tallied two goals, two steals and two kick outs, the Broncos went on a 10-3 run in the second half to solidify their sixth conference win of the season. The following day SCU rallied back for a 10-9 double overtime victory over Maryland on March 15. After earning an immediate 4-0 lead, the Terrapins responded with a 9-4 run. With seconds left in regulation, sophomore Taylor Harkins scored the nine-all tying goal to send the game into overtime. In the first overtime period junior Meg Zimmerman scored the game-winning goal and the Bronco defense kept Maryland's offense at bay in the second over time period to lead Santa Clara to their second straight victory.

Santa Clara suffered their lone loss on the weekend versus then No. 3 UCLA 14-6 on March 13. In a valiant effort, behind senior Amy Lamb who had three assists and a goal, the Broncos could not outlast the top-five Bruins.

Scouting Sonoma State
The Sonoma State Seawolves (6-10, 5-3 WWPA) will face the Broncos amidst a two-game losing streak. Sonoma, who is currently in sixth-place in the conference, will face the Broncos who are manning the third-place slot. The Seawolves are 0-7 this season versus top-20 opponents and are 3-1 at home this season. They are offensively led by the scoring tandem of Samantha Mullins and Laurel Stricklin, who combine for 57 goals this season. In the cage Lysa Lombard has tallied 127 blocks, as the starting Seawolves goalie.

On Deck
The Broncos will remain on the road for their next four games, following their Sonoma State contest. They will travel to Tempe, Ariz. to participate in the ASU Invitational from March 28-29. SCU will square off with four teams: No. 8 Arizona State, California Baptist, Cal Lutheran and No. 9 UC Irvine at the two-day tournament.