Score sheet

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — The Pioneer water polo team fought hard, but came up short in a 14-8 loss to No. 11 Loyola Marymount in the first round of the WWPA Championships on Friday. Cal State East Bay (16-16), which came into the tournament as the seventh seed, was unable to overcome an early deficit despite four goals from senior Claire Pierce. The second-seeded Lions (19-12) advance to play the host Broncos in the semi-finals.

It was all LMU to start the game, as four different Lions scored in the first quarter. In a period that featured six kick outs and two 6-on-5 goals for LMU, the Pioneers were unable to get a shot past Lion goalkeeper Claire Wright.

LMU scored twice to open the second quarter, extending their lead to 6-0. That was when the Pioneers finally started to click offensively. Sara Hudyn scored on a penalty shot to put East Bay on the board. Pierce followed with three goals in the final six minutes of the half, including a 6-on-5 strike that beat the halftime buzzer. The Pioneers went into the break down just 8-4.

Unfortunately, they were unable to find the back of the cage for the entire third quarter. The Lions scored five straight times, with two of their goals coming after exclusions, as they extended their lead to 13-4.

Kate McAfee notched a goal on the first possession of the fourth quarter to break the scoring run. The Pioneers followed with three more goals in the period, but their comeback attempt ran out of time as LMU hung on to win 14-8.

Pierce and LMU's Ivana Castro tied for the game high with four goals. Hudyn, the WWPA's leading scorer, added two more to her record-setting total. McAfee and Allison Zell scored the other goals for East Bay. Marrina Nation tallied six saves in the cage.

The loss drops the Pioneers into the consolation bracket, where they will take on Cal State Monterey Bay on Saturday at 11 a.m. Visit the WWPA Tournament Central to follow all the action.