Scoresheet

FRESNO, Calif. --- The Cal State East Bay water polo team picked up a road victory on Friday afternoon, topping Fresno Pacific 13-4 at Clovis East High School. The Pioneers (4-7) have now won eight consecutive games over the Sunbirds (1-8). Junior Sara Hudyn led all players with six goals in the win, which matches her season high.

Claire Pierce and Kate McAfee each recorded hat tricks, as well, netting three goals each. Goalkeeper Mary Reardon tallied a career-high 15 saves for East Bay in the win.

"We got off to a slow start today," said head coach Lisa Cooper after the game. "But our offense finally started clicking in the second half. We also had a great game defensively, allowing just four goals."

The Pioneers netted just two goals in the first quarter and one goal in the second, but their defense stymied the Sunbirds. East Bay went into halftime with a narrow 3-2 advantage. They continued to frustrate Fresno Pacific on the defensive end in the third quarter, posting a shutout for the period.

The game remained tight until late in the third, when the Pioneers broke it open. McAfee scored on a 6-on-5 to make the score 4-2. East Bay then added a pair of goals as Pierce and Hudyn both found the back of the cage in the quarter's final minute. This gave the Pioneers a more comfortable 6-2 lead heading into the fourth. 

East Bay tallied seven more goals in the final period, one of which came from junior Hollie Mickelson, the first goal of her Pioneer career. The team scored five times in the last four minutes of the game, and Hudyn notched four goals in the fourth quarter. The Pioneers ended up out-scoring the Sunbirds 10-2 in the second half, cruising to the 13-4 win. 

East Bay has the rest of the weekend off before resuming tournament play next week. They'll travel down to Thousand Oaks next Friday to compete in the two-day Posada Royale Invitational, hosting by Cal Lutheran. The Pioneers will open against Whittier College on Saturday, Mar. 2 at 12:50 p.m.