LOS ANGELES – For the second consecutive game, the Occidental women's water polo team was involved in a thriller that came down to the final seconds.
But this time they came away on top.
Morgan McClafferty cut to goal, rebounded a missed shot and buried the game winner with 1 second on the clock, leading the Tigers to a dramatic 6-5 win at Pomona-Pitzer on Saturday.
"It was a classic SCIAC matchup," Oxy head coach Larry Zubrin said. "As a team, we came to play today and we had players step up in the clutch."
The Tigers were on the wrong side of a heartbreaker their last time out, falling 6-5 to Redlands in their home opener on March 26.
Oxy goalie Sofie Munoz was the player of the game, totaling 15 saves, including three key stops in the last 3 minutes.
"It was a heroic effort by Sofie. Definitely one for the ages," Zubrin said. "We have two great senior goalies and today was Sofie's day to shine."
Koral Gill led the Tigers with three goals and three steals. Lizzy Kosin and Lindsay Albino each had one.
Pomona-Pitzer led 3-2 at half, 4-2 midway through the third and 5-4 in the fourth. Gill finally got Oxy back to even with a score with 2:16 left in the fourth.
The Tigers improve to 3-16 overall. They return to action on April 5, hosting Whittier at 11 a.m.
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BOX SCORE 1st 2nd 3rd 4th TOTAL
Occidental 1 2 1 2 6
Pomona 2 2 1 0 5
OXY STATS:
Goals/Attempts: Gill-3/4, McClafferty-1/3, Albino-1/1, Kosin-1/3, DesCombes-0/2, Shyba-0/1, Wheeler-0/1, Zurcher-0/2, Soot-0/2
Assists: Shyba-2, Albino-1, McClafferty-1
Steals: Shyba-3, Gill-3, Kosin-2, Albino-2, McClafferty-2, Wheeler-1
Turn-Overs: Shyba-3, Albino-3, Soot-3, McClafferty-2, Kosin-1
Exclusions/Drawn: Munz-0/1, Albino-0/4, Wheeler-0/1, Kosin-1/0, Shyba-2/0, McClafferty-2/0, Gill-1/0, Zurcher-1/0, Soot-1/0
Saves/Goals Allowed: Munoz-15/5
