Photo: Tony Leon/ActionWestPhotography.com

WHITTIER, Calif. (Mar. 27, 2022) – Senior Alex Lopez (Boyle Heights, Calif. / Fullerton College) of the Whittier College women's water polo team put up four goals against Chapman University on Saturday afternoon in a game the Poets controlled for all four quarters.

Defensively, the Poets did a sufficient job of pressing the Panthers, setting a tone for the rest of the game that would help limit the traffic in front of the home net. Consistency within the offense also proved to be a plus, as Whittier scored no fewer than four goals in each of the first three periods, two of which came on the powerplay. Of the six shots Lopez took, four of them found a home in the back of the net as Chapman could come up with few answers for the number of opportunities the senior was able to create in front of the net.

She was not, however, the only Poet to make noise on the offensive end. Senior Bryanna Santis (Commerce, Calif. / Fullerton College) scored three times, one of which might be a goal of the year-candidate on a shot from mid-pool that beat the Chapman goalie with just one second remaining in the first half. In addition, senior Teresa Marchetti (Messina, Italy / Liceo La Farina) stood out with another terrifici two-way game that featured a pair of goals and an assist. Whittier goalies Lauren Tapia (Whittier, Calif. / Rosary) and Alexys Puche (Whittier, Calif. / Rosary) split time in net, and it Puche's second-half play proved to be as good as ever with the freshman making eight athletic saves over 16 minutes of action.

Head Coach David Kasa and the Poets won't have long to rest, as they will participate in the Whittier Mini on Sunday, Mar. 27, playing twice in one day against Cal State Northridge at 9 a.m. and Brown University at 4 p.m.

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