Photo: Tony Leon/ActionWestPhotography.com

LA VERNE, Calif. (Mar. 2, 2022) – The Whittier College women's water polo team put on a defensive clinic at the University of La Verne on Wednesday night, shutting out the Leopards over the first half en route to a 12-6 conference road win.

Senior goalkeeper Lauren Tapia (Whittier, Calif. / Rosary) had her biggest game of the season, turning away 13 La Verne shots, saving more than double the number of shots that the Leopards scored on. Her save percentage amounted to 68 for the game, and led the Poets to defense to 32 minutes of dominance in a SCIAC foe's pool. The defense in front of the senior goalie made life a bit easier on her, as the defense batted down a pair of La Verne shots and totaled nine steals for the night. Seniors Alex Lopez (Boyle Heights, Calif. Fullerton College) and Karissa Qualley (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif. / Long Beach City College) stood out as Poets to garner multiple steals against the Leopards.

Whittier opened the game on a 5-0 run over the first half, and while the 'zero' next to the home team's name is notable, the five-goal lead the Poets took into the half seemed even steeper than otherwise because of the defensive execution. The Poets scored on more than half their shots for the game with senior Natasha Velez (La Habra, Calif. / Cypress College) leading the way with a hat trick. Behind Whittier's senior standout attacker, three other Poets scored more than once, including Lopez, junior Ally Burke (Las Vegas, Nev. / Bishop Gorman) and senior Bryanna Santis (Commerce, Calif. / Fullerton College). Lopez, who played as sound of an all-around game as any of the field players in the pool, also had three assists and a pair of drawn exclusions, giving the home team problems on both offensive and defensive ends.

Head Coach David Kasa and the Poets will now look to test themselves against a small handful of Division I programs when they compete at the Claremont Convergence tournament this weekend. The Poets will first face Carthage College on Friday at 12:30 p.m.

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