The University of Redlands women's water polo team opened Wednesday's contest against Caltech on a 9-0 run, and never looked back en route to trouncing the Beavers, 15-3. It was a total-team effort for Redlands, as nine different players scored in the 12-goal victory.
The Bulldogs initiated the scoring after just one minute in the first period when junior center Jaci Cochrane (San Bernardino, CA) found the back of the net. Senior driver Jill Stein (Palm Desert, CA) doubled Redlands' total not long after that with her first goal of the game at the 6:02-mark.
Later in the period, Cochrane capped off the strong opening frame for the Maroon and Gray with her second score to make it 6-0.
Stein continued the early momentum for the Bulldogs by tallying her second of the night early in the second frame to extend the lead to seven. Freshman center Caitlyn Freeman (Brentwood, CA) then registered another goal for the U of R with 2:02 remaining before the break, making it 8-0. With 20 seconds to go in the half, freshman driver Taylor Christie (Anaheim, CA) finished off the impressive start to the game with her first of two scores.
The Maroon and Gray continued to cruise while utilizing multiple players in the team's 12th win of the season. In addition to Cochrane and Christie, sophomore center-defender Deandra Van Houten (Huntington Beach, CA), freshman center Meg Claypool (Portland, OR), junior driver Becca Woodruff (Davis, CA), and Stein provided two goals apiece.
The Bulldogs patrolled the cage by committee with freshman goalkeepers Alma Lopez (Northridge, CA) and Maurisa Major (Sacramento, CA) both seeing time in the pool.
Although Redlands (12-17, 5-3 SCIAC) has completed its dual-match schedule, it must wait for the results of Saturday's games to determine its seed for the upcoming Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) Championship Tournament, which takes place on April 26-28 at Caltech. Times and pairings will be posted on www.goredlands.com.
