Stockton, Calif. - The No. 14 Pacific women's water polo team won its seventh-straight, with a 12-10 win over Cal Baptist Friday afternoon at Chris Kjeldsen Pool
Anna Kertes scored three goals while Karolina Hlavata, Rachel Krieger and Gracie Smith each added two. Michele Relton posted 11 saves in goal for Pacific.
The Tigers led by as many as four, but a five-goal fourth quarter from Jessica Castellano tightened up the final score. The Lancers never held possession with a chance to tie the game in the second half, as the Tigers maintained a multi-goal lead for all but two possessions of the half.
Pacific improves to 13-9 overall, 4-1 in Golden Coast Conference play, Cal Baptist falls to 18-13 overall, 1-4 in GCC action. Cal Baptist keeper Meghan Rowland recorded 12 saves for the Lancers.
Paizlee Dreyer's shot from seven meters away hit the hand of a defender and slipped into the net for a 1-0 Cal Baptist lead. Dreyer finished again to put the Lancers up two. Kertes converted on a skip-shot low to cut the lead to 2-1, and Rachel Krieger tied the game at 2-2.
Valerie Spezzaferri snuck one past the keeper on the first possession of the second quarter, but Gracie Smith answered back for Pacific, and Taylor Adair ripped a shot past the keeper to the right side to give Pacific a 4-3 lead. Dreyer's third goal tied the game at 4-4 midway through the second. Relton made a lunging save on a breakaway by Hannah Evans, darting out at the breaking player and getting her arm down on the skip attempt. Evans entered the game with a GCC-leading 106 goals on the season, but the Tigers blanked her for the game.
Kertes floated a pass over the defense, cross pool, to Hlavata on the doorstep, who finished between the keeper's arms for a 5-4 lead. Kertes then finished a 6-on-5 just before the end of the quarter as Pacific led 6-4 at halftime.
Hlavata lobbed a shot in transition over the keeper to the far corner of the net for a 7-4 lead. Adair slipped a quick shot from a sharp angle under Rowland to stretch the Tigers' lead to 8-4. Spezzaferri narrowed the margin to 8-5, before Kertes' completed the hat trick for her 40th goal of the season. But Cal Baptist finished the third quarter with a goal from Mallory Montano to close to 9-6.
Smith finished for a 10-7 lead, but Castellano scored three fourth-quarter goals to narrow the gap to 10-9 with 4:07 to play. Brydie Pye's shot was deflected, but had enough on it to slip over the line for an 11-9 Pacific lead with 3:25 left. Castellano finished a penalty shot with 41 seconds left, and the Tigers milked the clock down before Castellano tallied again with two seconds remaining to close on the final score.
Pacific has won seven in a row for the fourth time in program history, with a pair of seven-game win streaks in the 2013 season, behind only a program-record 13 wins in 2010.
The Tigers will fact No. 17 Loyola Marymount on Saturday at noon, as the Tigers look to clinch the number two seed in the Golden Coast Conference Championship coming up next week at Pacific's Kjeldsen Pool.
