Marist water polo won their first game in the Arizona State Invitational before losing their next three matchups to ranked opponents.
The team opened the weekend with a 20-4 win against unranked Ottawa University Arizona (0-7). The Red Foxes (6-10) then struggled against all three ranked teams they faced: seventh-ranked Arizona State University (7-23), 12th-ranked University of California Santa Barbara (7-10) and 19th-ranked San Jose State University (8-12).
Marist had full control in their first game of the weekend against OUAZ. By halftime, the score was 10-1, with Marist scoring six goals in the first quarter. Sophomore attack Lela McCarrol and junior attack Liana Hunt ended the game with three goals apiece in Marist’s 20-4 win. Sophomore goalie Inés Sánchez also made her mark, recording 17 saves.
The next game also came on Saturday, and it was against the home team in ASU. The game started strong for Marist with junior center and team captain Ella Baumgarten recording the first goal with 7:41 left in the first. At the end of the quarter, Marist trailed 3-2.
ASU dominated on offense during the second quarter with five goals, while Marist scored just two. The Red Foxes ultimately lost the game 23-7, allowing six goals in the third quarter and nine in the fourth.
On Sunday, Marist had two games against ranked opponents, UCSB and SJSU. Marist has lost to UCSB seven times since 2007, with this meet-up being the eighth. The closest game between the two teams was during their first-ever matchup when Marist lost 7-5.
Marist kicked off the scoring with a goal from graduate student utility Shinae Carrington. UCSB junior attacker Mary Beth Heffelfinger was quick to answer, scoring 23 seconds later. The first quarter ended with Marist leading 3-2.
UCSB junior attacker Emily Ferguson began the second quarter by scoring the first goal of what would eventually become a hat trick. The Guachos tallied four goals in the second, while Marist added two. At the half, Marist trailed 6-5.
The deficit increased in the third quarter, with the Gauchos scoring three times with no answers from the Red Foxes. After Marist made only a modest dent into the lead in the final quarter, the final score was 10-7 in favor of UCSB.
Marist capped off the tournament with a game against San Jose State University (19). The Red Foxes played SJSU two times during the 2023 season, losing by six in each contest.
SJSU recorded the first goal of the game with 6:53 left in the first quarter, but Marist responded quickly with a goal from sophomore utility Paige Naegle 20 seconds later. The first quarter ended with SJSU leading 3-1.
Marist clapped back with a three-goal run to start the second quarter; junior attacker Rachel Dean, Baumgarten, and Naegle each contributed during the scoring barrage. At half, the Spartan lead had been trimmed to 5-4.
In the third quarter, a similar script unfolded as SJSU scored three times while the Red Foxes only secured one goal from Baumgarten with 6:04 left in the quarter. Marist did bring more pressure in the fourth, with the opening goal of the quarter coming from McCarroll, but the Spartans answered 18 seconds later with a goal from sophomore two-meter defender Sinia Plotz.
Plotz salted the game away all by herself, recording three total goals in the fourth quarter for the Spartans. This made all the difference, as SJSU defeated Marist 12-8.
Looking back on the entire tournament as a whole, McCarroll led Marist with a total of eight goals, followed by Naegle with six. Senior utility Kaylee Brard, Baumgarten and freshman utility Samantha Bentley ended up recording five goals each across the team’s four games.
Marist will play again this Friday and Saturday, Feb. 16 and 17, at the Bronco Invitational in Santa Clara, California. Their opponents will include 16th-ranked University of the Pacific, Concordia University Irvine, Santa Clara University and California State University Monterrey Bay.
Edited by Luke Sassa
Graphic by Cara Lacey; Photo from Kira Crutcher
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