Tritons Advance to Big West Semifinals with 15-10 Win Over UC Davis

IRVINE, Calif. — The fourth seeded UC San Diego women’s water polo team defeated fifth-seeded UC Davis, 15-10, in a Big West Championship quarterfinal Friday afternoon at Anteater Aquatics Complex in Orange County.

The Tritons advance to Saturday’s semifinal round and will face top-seeded Hawai’i at noon. The Rainbow Wahine punched their ticket into the semis with a 16-6 thumping of Cal State Fullerton, the eighth seed, in Friday’s first game.

There are still two quarterfinals to be played as of press time. Second-seeded Long Beach State takes on No. 7 CSUN while No. 3 UC Irvine, the Big West Championship host, plays No. 6 UC Santa Barbara for the remaining two semifinal spots.

The final is set for Sunday at noon. 

HOW IT HAPPENED

Courtney Okumura scored the game’s opening goal at 5:07 of the first quarter and UC San Diego enjoyed a lead for the rest of the contest.

The Tritons led 4-1 after the first, 7-4 at halftime, and 11-7 following three quarters of play.

Late in the second period the Aggies closed within a goal. Trailing 4-1, they scored two straight times to make it 4-3. However, UC San Diego responded by putting three-consecutive goals on the board to go up 7-3.

After trading multiple goals in the third, Kendall Thomas, Abigail Schechter, and Lucia Doak went back-to-back-to-back, bringing the score to 12-7 Tritons at the 7:18 mark of the fourth frame. The Aggies couldn’t gain any momentum as the Tritons kept the pressure on until the final horn.

Ten different Tritons scored in the game and Okumura lead the way with a hat trick. Caroline Christl, Doak, and Holly Roberts each scored twice. Six other UC San Diego players contributed one goal apiece.

Lexi Stahl was busy in net for the Tritons, making 15 saves, two short of her career high, in the complete game victory.

For UC Davis, Sam Yoo netted three goals while Gianna Nocetti scored twice. Lucy Holland and Eva Stein split time in goal and made seven and four saves, respectively.

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About UC San Diego Athletics

After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of The Big West in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 84 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world’s preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.