POMONA, Calif. (April 28, 2010) – Four days after the Black and Orange knocked off Pomona Pitzer on senior day, the Sagehens exacted some revenge, defeating the Tigers in the opening round of the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference tournament by the final score of 16-12.
Unfortunately in the rematch, Oxy was unable to sustain control of the game, although they did jump out to a quick 2-1 lead on back to back scores by Emily Phillips and Lucy Vallejo-Anderson.
This time Pomona Pitzer responded, scoring four straight goals to take control of this tournament game, forcing the Tigers to play catch up all evening.
The Tigers have gained confidence all season, and that coupled with resolve was needed in this playoff game, as the Sagehens had an answer for every Tiger move.
Anderson scored again to cut the lead to two, than Isabel Osgood-Roach traded scored to keep the lead at just two, but the Sagehens then found the net two more times to open their biggest lead of the contest at four.
The Black and Orange calmly responded, as Sarah Kessler started the rally with 3:19 left in the first period, and Charlotte Bromley notched two more in less than ninety seconds to cut the lead to one at 8-7. The home squad was able to tack one more on before halftime, and led 9-7 after 30 minutes of play.
Although the Tigers had momentum going into halftime, it was the Sagehens that emerged from the locker room with it on their side, as they rolled to a 5-1 start and a 14-8 lead with 16:09 left in the game.
The Black and Orange had learned over the course of the regular season how to fight back, and Osgood-Roach displayed that character as she single handedly scored three straight to cut the lead in half.
The Tigers just ran out of time, as they fell to the Sagehens by the final score of 16-12.
Oxy wraps up the inaugural season with a lot to look forward to, as they will bring back 15 letterwinners, and unlike this season they will all have NCAA experience, as not one athlete on this roster could say that. So the future is very bright for this program.
