Game 1 Box  |  Game 2 Box

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. --- The Pioneer water polo team picked up a pair of wins of the first day of the Posada Royale Invitational, topping Whittier College 8-4 in their first game, and hanging on to beat Azusa Pacific 12-10 in the evening. Sara Hudyn led the way with eight goals for the Pioneers in the doubleheader. Cal State East Bay (6-7) has now won three straight games, their longest winning streak of the season so far.

Game 1 -- CSUEB 8, Whittier 4

The Pioneers kicked off the tournament Saturday afternoon at the Sotelo Aquatic Center at Oaks Christian School. They jumped out to a 3-1 lead after the first quarter, as Hudyn, Kate McAfee, and Julia Charlesworth each netted goals. 

Whittier (3-2) clawed back with a pair of goals and kept the Pioneers from pulling away before halftime. East Bay took a narrow 4-3 advantage into the break. The Poets tied it at 4-4 at the start of the third quarter, but the Pioneers answered back with three straight goals. McAfee scored again and Hudyn found the back of the twice more, giving a Pioneers a 7-4 lead heading into the fourth. 

East Bay ramped up the intensity on defense in the final period. They tacked on another goal to start the fourth, and goalkeeper Mary Reardon shut out Whitter the rest of the way. The sophomore totaled eight saves in the 8-4 Pioneer victory. Hudyn posted a hat trick, leading all players with three goals. McAfee also netted a pair of goals for East Bay.

Game 2 -- CSUEB 12, Azusa Pacific 10

The Pioneers made the short trip over to the campus of Cal Lutheran to take on Azusa Pacific (3-13) at the Samuelson Aquatic Center in their second game. These two teams met at Pioneer Pool earlier this year, with East Bay winning 11-7 behind six goals from Hudyn. Today's game was a tighter contest, as the Cougars scored eight second-half goals to keep the score close.

The Pioneers got off to a great start in the first half, and it looked like they might be headed for a blowout. Claire Pierce scored a pair of goals in the first quarter, helping give East Bay a 4-1 lead after one. It was deja vu in the second quarter -- the Pioneers once again out-scored the Cougars 4-1, led by two goals from Allison Zell. Marrina Nation playing the first half in the cage, and East Bay went into recess with a comfortable 8-2 lead.

The Pioneers turned to Reardon in goal for the third quarter, but Azusa Pacific refused to die. Hudyn scored twice in the period, but the Cougars tallied five goals, cutting the East Bay lead to five at 10-5. Naton returned for the fourth quarter, and while the Pioneers were once again out-scored in the period, they were able to hang on for the win. Hudyn netted two more goals, the last of which put the Pioneers up 12-10 with 1:38 left. 

Nation posted six saves for East Bay, and Reardon added one. Hudyn led all players with five goals, four of which came in the second half. Pierce had a hat trick, totaling three goals. Zell finished with two goals, while McAfee and Charlesworth scored once each. 

East Bay has two more tournament games tomorrow. They take on the hosts, Cal Lutheran, at 8:10 a.m. in the first game, before traveling back to Oaks Christian to play La Verne in the finale.