The University of Redlands women's water polo team headed north to Stockton for the Pacific Invitational on Saturday, competing against the host school and Azusa Pacific University. The Bulldogs challenged the top-notch opponents but fell short in both contests.
Against APU, the Maroon and Gray faced an early four-goal deficit and struggled to recover en route to 3-11 loss. Freshman driver Grace Cochran (Danville, CA), junior center-defender Deandra Van Houten (Huntington Beach, CA), and senior center Jaci Cochrane (San Bernardino, CA) accounted for the Bulldogs' netters, while senior goalkeeper Julie Lupfer (San Diego, CA) tallied 15 saves in the defeat.
While taking on the University of the Pacific, Redlands fell behind in the first period once again, as junior center-defender Tricia Bannister (Naperville, IL) converted a five-meter penalty shot for the team's only goal.
However, this time the Bulldogs rallied to pull within two on more than one occasion. The Bulldogs looked to Van Houten, Cochrane, and sophomore driver Annie Kinney (Newport Beach, CA) to fire off key goals in the second and third stanza, making it 7-9 with eight minutes to go. Redlands out-scored the opponents, 3-2, in the third frame with hopes of swaying the momentum in the right direction.
Unfortunately, the home team controlled the offense in the final stanza, leading to the 7-13 defeat for the Maroon and Gray.
Lupfer recorded nine saves for the Bulldogs.
Redlands (8-12) heads to Santa Clara University on Sunday for a pair of non-conference matches. The Bulldogs battle it out with the host school at 9 a.m., before squaring off against Cal State Monterey Bay at 12 noon.
