RIVERSIDE, Calif. - The #16 Pacific Women's Water Polo Team (12-10, 6-1) travels to California Baptist this weekend for the GCC Conference Championship, April 22-24.
"We have a great draw," said Head Coach James Graham. "We did not have a very good outing against Concordia in our regular season match-up, and the team is motivated to show that team who we really are. We will see how the tournament plays out from there, but our primary goal is still achievable."
The Pacific Tigers finished the regular season seeded 2nd in the GCC and are on a five-game win streak.
The Tigers will take on No. 7 Concordia-Irvine (9-12, 2-5) Friday, April 22 at noon in the quarterfinals. The Tigers played the Eagles in early April and won 8-5. It was a multiple-goal contest for four Tigers. Senior Toula Falvey, graduate student Mariana Duarte, senior Brianna Utas and senior Emma Myall each had two goals. Redshirt junior goalkeeper Clara Vulpisi had six saves and three steals in the net. As a team, the Tigers had eight steals. Pacific is 10-0 against Concordia-Irvine.
The game can be live-streamed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFiGUm2grXg.
The championship tournament will be held at California Baptist's Lancer Aquatics Center from April 22-24, starting on Friday, April 22, with four first-round match-ups. The Championships continue on Saturday, April 23, with four more games, including the semifinals at 2 and 4 p.m. Championship Sunday will feature the third-place match at 11 a.m. and then the title match at 1 p.m. The winner of the three-day tournament earns the league's automatic bid to the 2022 National Collegiate Women's Water Polo Championships held May 6-8 in Ann Arbor, Mich. Tickets are on sale now in advance or can be purchased at the Lancer Aquatics Center day of the game. For complete information, visit Tournament Central.
Pacific will be hosting a complimentary watch party for Friday's quarterfinal game. Spectators are welcome to come to the Chris Kjeldsen Pool at 11:45 a.m. and grab a seat in the stands.
Lap swimming also occurs at this time. The fee to lap swim is still in place.
Pacific heads into the tournament with five players recently receiving GCC All-Conference accolades. Duarte is fourth in the conference for goals, leading the team with 57 goals and 73 points this season. Utas leads the conference with 21 field blocks and is third in the conference with 35 steals. Vulpisi has 199 saves and a 53.5 save percentage to be atop of the GCC leader board for both categories.
Pacific vs. Concordia-Irvine
GCC Championship Quarterfinal
Friday, April 22 – Noon
Live Stream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFiGUm2grXg
Live Stats: https://www.thefosh.net/live/12798
