Photo: Tony Leon/ActionWestPhotography.com

CLAREMONT, Calif. (Mar. 16, 2022) – The Whittier College women's water polo team has a knack for getting into close games with Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges, and Wednesday night's road game in Claremont was no exception. The Poets fell to the Athenas, 8-7, marking the second time they have fallen to their SCIAC foe by one goal this season.

Whittier made it a point to close the door on prime opportunities for the Athenas early, holding the home team to just one goal through the game's first eight minutes. Senior goalie Lauren Tapia (Whittier, Calif. / Rosary) played the entire game in net and lifted the visitors with 10 saves. Tapia and the Poets would shrug off an early Athenas goal on the powerplay and go on to score the next four goals, including a rocket from junior defender Ally Burke (Las Vegas, Nev. / Bishop Gorman) to kick the second period off in style. Whittier would continue to apply pressure on both sides of the pool, with senior Teresa Marchetti (Messina, Italy / Liceo La Farina) finishing the game as a top contributor in both areas. Marchetti finished the night with two goals, an assist and two steals on a team-high seven shots, striking first on the powerplay before giving her side a big answer in the third period as the Athenas began to round into form.

With both teams having a great familiarity with one another having met earlier in the season at the Bulldog Invitational, the goals continued to be few and far between, though the Athenas gained some momentum in the third quarter which they carried through to the finish. A couple late goals from senior Amelia Bennett (Calgary, Alberta, Canada / Riverside City College) helped the Poets keep things close, and even staked them to a one-goal lead with just under five minutes to go. However, the Athenas would dig deep, eventually stealing another win from the Poets, this time in SCIAC play. Whittier will rematch CMS at home in the final game of the regular season on Wednesday, Apr. 20.

Head Coach David Kasa and the Poets will aim to get back on track when they host the University of La Verne in one week's time at the Slade Aquatics Center.

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