The University of Redlands women's water polo team played co-host to the Cal Baptist University Lancer Invite No. 2 this weekend and battled it out with a variety of opponents from around the country. The Bulldogs tallied a 2-2 record during this two-day event with wins over Fresno Pacific University and Siena College (NY).
On Friday, Redlands earned a 9-6 decision of Fresno Pacific with junior center Jaime Nippert (Gresham, OR) uncorking a six-goal performance. Amid a truly defensive battle, freshman goalkeeper Julie Lupfer (San Diego, CA) recorded a career-high 15 saves for the Bulldogs.
Despite junior center Joy Corona's (Lake Bluff, IL) four goals, the Maroon and Gray came up short against Indiana by a score of 10-13. In addition, Nippert and senior driver Chandler Weeks (Palm Springs, CA) each provided two scores for the Bulldogs. Lupfer and senior goalkeeper Tiana Singley (Benicia, CA) split time in the cage, earning five and two stops, respectively.
Redlands struggled against Iona on Saturday, leading to an 8-14 defeat. Sophomore driver Moana Tuipulotu (Lahaina, HI) provided a hat trick as the team's top scorer, while five other players found the back of the net once. Lupfer recorded six saves in the loss.
The Bulldogs finished out the tournament with an exciting 16-12 win over Siena. Nippert, Tuipulotu and Corona combined for 13 of the team's goals with Nippert scoring five. Lupfer stepped up her play between the pipes with another double-digit save performance with 10.
Redlands (10-6) wraps up its non-conference schedule when it travels to Cal State Bakersfield on March 26-27 for the Roadrunner Invitational.
