LOS ANGELES — Nanea Fujiyama (Honolulu) scored three of her game-high five goals to erase a three-goal Pomona-Pitzer lead and tie the score at seven with 3 minutes, 44 seconds left.

But Katy Schafer scored her fourth goal of the game, Mahalia Prater-Fahey added an insurance goal and the Occidental College women's water polo team (7-16, 1-2 SCIAC) couldn't overcome a sluggish offensive start in a 9-7 loss to the Sagehens (10-14, 2-1 SCIAC) at Taylor Pool on Saturday.

"Right now we are on the outside looking in. We've been in this position before and we just have to focus on the next game," Occidental coach Larry Zubrin said. "And like we always do we'll come through it."

Fujiyama had Oxy's only goal in the first half. Then at the start of the third quarter, the senior perennial All-American sparked the Tigers' offense with the half's first score just 23 seconds into the period. A little more than 1 minute later, Morgan McClafferty (Huntington Beach) found Lindsay Albino (Greenwich, Conn.), tying the game, 3-3.

The Sagehens responded with three unanswered goals before Albino assisted Danielle Garcia (Houston, Texas), making it 6-4 at the end of the third.

After Schafer scored a penalty shot at the beginning of the fourth, putting Pomona-Pitzer back up by three, Fujiyama put the Tigers on her back. She scored on a soft lob shot, a skip shot and a line drive to bring Oxy all the way back.

Rachel Adeleye (Elizabeth, N.J.), who kept Oxy in the game during the first quarter with six of her 10 saves, deflected a Sagehens' shot, giving the Tigers one last opportunity with less than 1:30 to go.

But Oxy's final two shots hit the crossbar and the Pomona-Pitzer defeated Oxy for the second time this season. The Sagehens beat the Tigers 8-5 in a non-conference game at the Cal Lutheran Posada Royale Invitational on March 2.

Oxy continues SCIAC play next Saturday at Whittier.