Courtesy: Redlands Athletics
The third-seeded University of Redlands women’s water polo team traveled to Chapman University for the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) Postseason Tournament Semifinal game on Saturday morning. After three close quarters, the Bulldog offense spread the distance by scoring three goals while stealthy defense held the Panthers scoreless in the final period to take the game 11-7.
Although the Panthers struck first, senior attacker Kelly Klish (Glenview, IL) found junior attacker Holly Kvanvig (Beaverton, OR) to even the tally at 5:16 on a powerplay. Just under two minutes later, the duo struck again this time Kvanvig feeding Klish for the score and the, 2-1, lead.
Sophomore attacker Alyssa Baratelle (Lake Elsinore, CA) completed the first-quarter scoring with a goal at 41 seconds to go ahead, 3-2, after one.
The Bulldogs outscored Chapman, 2-1, in the second period with first-year attacker Kaitlynn Pierceall (Beaumont, CA) and Kvanvig finding the back of the net. However, the Panthers managed a late quarter score for a 5-3 Redlands advantage at the half.
Chapman closed the gap in the third as Redlands held a slight 8-7 lead heading into the final stanza. Senior attacker Katelynn Holloman (Wildomar, CA), Klish, and Kvanvig were responsible for the Maroon and Gray’s three goals.
Sophomore attacker Katrina Nielsen (Houston, TX) put one through the posts just 20 seconds into the period to spread the distance. Turnovers plagued both teams over the next four minutes until Nielsen dished out a crafty pass to Holloman for the score with 3:02 left in the game. Kvanvig capped the day with her fourth and final goal letting go of the shot right at the buzzer to take home an impressive 11-7 victory.
Sophomore goalkeeper Tori Zielinski (Sunnyvale, CA) was money between the posts, making an incredible 15 stops to secure the win.
The team now faces top-seeded Cal Lutheran University on Sunday, May 2, for a 12 noon game in Thousand Oaks.