Defense shuts down Oxy in 10-4 win

ORANGE, Calif. – It took nearly 23 minutes for Occidental to get on the board as the Chapman University women's water polo team cruised to a 10-4 victory. The defense held Occidental scoreless through the first half and senior Grace Schade scored four times to lead the Panthers (6-15, 3-1 SCIAC) to their fourth win in the last five matches.

Sophomore Alyssa Welfringer made eight saves in the first half and a stout defensive effort helped the Panthers build a 6-0 halftime lead. The tone was immediately set on the defensive end as the Tigers were forced to dump the ball into the corner on each of their first three possessions as the shot clock ran down. Chapman forced a turnover on their fourth possession to spark a 7-0 run to open the match.

Schade had a hat trick in the first quarter to lead the charge. After senior Emiko Mizusawa scored to give Chapman a 1-0 lead, Schade found the net on two consecutive possessions and again with just over one minute to go. Her first two goals came in 6-on-5 situations, which the Panthers went on to convert four out of their six opportunities.

Mizusawa scored the lone goal of the second half as the defense continued to shut down the Oxy attack. A goal from junior Andi Sandoval early in third made it 7-0. Occidental finally got on the board as Hi'poi Lee found the back of the net with just over three minutes to go in the quarter. The Tigers converted none of their 6-on-5 opportunities but did hit a 5-meter shot.

The Panthers matched Occidental's scoring throughout the second half to cruise to the win. Chapman is back home tomorrow for a 6 p.m. showdown with Brown.

by Steven Olveda
Sports Information Director

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