Box Scores: CSUEB 14, Redlands 5  |  CSUEB 9, Toronto 8

REDLANDS, Calif. -- The Cal State East Bay water polo team was victorious in both its matches on Sunday to close out the Bulldog Invitational, defeating the host Redlands 14-5 in the morning, then prevailing over the University of Toronto by a 9-8 final score in the afternoon.

The Pioneers went 3-1 at the two-day tournament to return home with an overall record of 5-4. Sophomore Adrien Van Dyke had a huge weekend to lead the way with a total of 12 goals, eight of which came during Sunday's doubleheader.

CSUEB and Redlands were in the pool early this morning for a 9:30 a.m. contest, and the action started slowly as both teams netted just one goal in the opening period. East Bay's offense finally got going early in the second quarter with three goals in the span of two minutes. With 5:55 left until halftime, Van Dyke already had a hat trick and the Pioneers led 4-1.

Van Dyke notched her fourth goal of the game two minutes later, but the Bulldogs were able to find find the back of the cage twice before halftime to send the teams into the break with a relatively close 5-3 score.

The Pioneers pulled away in the third quarter, however, as they racked up five more goals while holding Redlands scoreless in the period. Makenna Nation tallied 11 saves and allowed three goals in the cage before freshman Brighton Kinney took over for the fourth with an 11-3 lead.

Brittany Smith scored in each of the first three quarters to notch her second hat trick of the weekend. Van Dyke beat the Redlands keeper twice more in the third to finish the game with six goals, the highest scoring output by a CSUEB player so far this season.

Newcomer Meghan Hayward netted a pair of second-half goals, and Tahnee Trew, Maci Taylor, Brooke Hodgkinson all got in on the fun too as the Pioneers cruised to victory in the final minutes.

The second game of the day was a much tenser affair, as Toronto did its best Santa Clara impression to give East Bay an extremely tight battle. In fact, the teams were tied or separated by just a single goal virtually the entire game. 

Van Dyke and Briana Ruiz each scored in the first quarter, and both times Toronto came back down to even the score on their very next possession. The Varsity Blues went ahead 3-2 early in the next period, but Ruiz had answer, netting her second goal of the contest on a power play. Then with 1:17 left in the second, Payton Bosque found the back of the cage to send East Bay into halftime with a 4-3 advantage.

Toronto scored the equalizer on a power play of their own early in the third, then the teams spent much of the quarter tied 4-4 until Ivanna Anderson got in the scoresheet to put the Pioneers back ahead. Toronto scored again in the final minute of the period, but Auriel Bill answered back on the next possession, giving CSUEB a 6-5 lead heading into the final quarter.

The Varsity Blues appeared to grab the momentum after scoring back-to-back goals in the first minute of the fourth, then stopping the Pioneers in a 6-on-5 situation following an exclusion. But the East Bay defense was stout, and three minutes later, Toronto was whistled for a five-meter foul. Maeve Flynn converted the penalty shot with 3:01 left to tie the score 7-7.

Another Toronto exclusion a minute later gave the Pioneers a power play, and this time they didn't miss the opportunity. Ivanna Anderson found the back of the cage to give CSUEB an 8-7 lead. Two possessions later, Van Dyke notched her second goal of the game with just 17 seconds left to seal the victory.

Daniela Passoni earned the win with five saves over the first two periods, and Nation played the final 16 minutes in the cage as the Pioneers prevailed in dramatic fashion. 

Next up, East Bay flies east to compete in the Indiana Hoosier Classic next Saturday and Sunday. The tournament schedule will feature designated WWPA games against Salem and Mercyhurst, as well as matchups with nationally-ranked squads Indiana and Cal State Northridge.