CMS Women's Water Polo Uses Big Run for 14-8 Road Win over Cal Lutheran

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. - The Claremont-Mudd-Scripps women's water polo team scored eight straight goals to open up an 11-2 lead and went on to capture a 14-8 road win over Cal Lutheran on Wednesday afternoon. 

With the win, CMS improves to 10-7 on the year and raises its record to 2-1 in the SCIAC after the first week of league competition. 

Isabel Del Villar and Olivia Cairns each had three goals, and Caitlin Muñoz had two goals and four assists to pace the Athena offense, with Del Villar adding three steals defensively to lead the Athenas. Grace Clark added two goals and an assist, and Valerie Wraith added a pair of goals.  

The score was 3-2 midway through the first quarter, when CMS went on its pivotal run that carried into the third. Elise Power started the 8-0 spurt with a goal off a Muñoz feed, and Clark and Cairns each scored to make it 6-2 heading into the second quarter.

Cairns added a goal in the second, and Wraith beat the buzzer with a goal to give the Athenas an 8-2 lead heading into the break. Del Villar, Muñoz and Clark had successive goals to start the second half and push the lead up to 11-2. 

Cal Lutheran dug down and was able to battle back with five straight goals to close to 11-7, but Del Villar scored two goals in a row to end the comeback threat.

CMS will have a week off before it returns to action with a road game at Whittier on Wednesday, before returning home on March 23 to face both Caltech and Brown and Axelrood Pool.