CMS Women's Water Polo Tightens the D for Pair of Wins

CLAREMONT, Calif. - The Claremont-Mudd-Scripps women's water polo team held Redlands to only two goals and Biola to seven as it picked up a pair of wins on Saturday, defeating Redlands 6-2 on the road in the morning and then defeating Biola 9-7 at home in the afternoon.

With the wins, CMS moves to 7-7 on the season and 2-0 in the SCIAC with its win over Redlands, after opening league play with an 11-10 sudden-death overtime win over La Verne on Wednesday. In that contest, Isabel Del Villar provided a clutch goal to tie it at the buzzer of the first overtime session and force it into sudden death. Against Biola, she had the tie-breaking goal with 3:33 left to make it 8-7, before Caitlin Muñoz added an insurance goal to seal it. 

In the first game of the day, CMS almost shut out Redlands for the entire first half, before the Bulldogs were able to score just the before the buzzer to cut the Athena lead to 3-1. 

Mia Adsen scored the only goal of the first quarter, and Muñoz stetched it to 3-0 with two goals in the second. Dara Schoolcraft scored off a Muñoz feed, and Del Villar answered a Redlands goal to make it 5-2 after three. Cooper McKenna scored the only goal of the fourth as CMS was able to take the road win, with its two goalies needing to make only four saves on the day. 

Against Biola, the Eagles scored on the first possession, but CMS scored the next three from Elise Power, Adsen and Schoolcraft. However, the Eagles scored three straight before the half, breaking a 3-3 tie on a goal with two seconds left from Veralie Neranjo. 

CMS took control back in the second half, though, as McKenna and Grace Clark scored 31 seconds apart to put the Athenas ahead 5-4, and after Biola tied it, Schoolcraft and Del Villar each found the net to push it to 7-5. 

Biola scored the first two goals of the fourth quarter to tie it, but Del Villar beat the shot clock to put CMS ahead to stay, and Mason Spencer made a key save late before Muñoz was able to seal it. 

CMS will be back in action when it hosts Cal Lutheran on Wednesday night at 7 p.m.