Water polo continues to roll at home with win over Scots

ORANGE, Calif. – The Chapman University women's water polo team continued its strong play at home defeating visiting Macalester College (Minn.) 17-8 at the Allred Olympic Pool on Tuesday afternoon. The Panthers improved to 4-2 in their home tank and 11-7 in Orange since last season.

Chapman (8-6) never trailed in the game, jumping out to a 7-3 lead in the first half thanks to three early goals by freshman utility Riley Ford, but it was the Panthers' second half offensive explosion that sealed the victory.

A balanced attack in the third quarter helped Chapman out-score the Scots 5-1 in a span of 6:55 in the period. Five different players scored goals in the period, including junior utility Sam Martin also scored three of her team-leading four goals in the second half. Sophomore driver Julie Case scored three goals in the game and added three assists.

For good measure, the Panthers scored five more times in the fourth quarter, including a fourth goal by Ford. The rookie has now scored in five straight games and is averaging 3.2 goals per game in that span. She also picked Macalester's pocket three times to add to her team-high 39 steals this season.

Junior driver Sami McLaughlin scored a goal and added a team-high five assists. Meanwhile, junior goalie Allison Smith (eight saves) and freshman goalie Kirsten Spicer (three saves, two steals), kept the Macalester (1-7) offense in check.

Chapman has alternated wins and losses over the past 11 games, a streak it hopes to break when it hosts Utah (Club) on Friday at 4 p.m. with back-to-back wins.

by Doug Aiken
Sports Information Director

Boxscore: http://www.chapmanathletics.com/sports/wwaterpolo/2011-12/files/MAC-CU.pdf

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