The April 20 matchup between crosstown rivals San Diego State and UCSD attracted young and old fans alike to Revelle Plaza for a pregame tailgate party in celebration of the No. 15 Tritons’ season and the annual Harper Cup game. However, there was no postgame celebration, as the UCSD women fell to the Aztecs in a close 6-5 contest. The loss dropped the Tritons to 15-15 for the season, headed into this weekend’s Western Water Polo Association Tournament, where an NCAA Championship Tournament berth is on the line on the Tritons’ home court.
Senior driver Flynn LaRochelle was honored on Senior Night in the Tritons’ marquee matchup against rival San Diego State on April 20. No. 15 UCSD fell to the No. 8 Aztecs by a final score of 6-5 in their last match before the Western Water Polo Association Tournament on April 28.
The game also marked Senior Night for the Tritons, and they started out with a personal touch, as seniors utility Michelle Perkins, 2-meter Kirsten Frazer, driver Flynn LaRochelle and goalkeeper Kaitlin Foe were honored for their dedication to the team. It was the younger girls, however, who started the Tritons off early, gaining a point a minute into the game on junior 2-meter Natalie Hockett’s goal. Another goal by sophomore utility Nicole Hermann with 2:09 on the clock put the Tritons firmly in control.
San Diego State’s Anna Gonzales retaliated with the Aztec’s first point on the game, but the Tritons dealt another blow right after on a goal by UCSD senior 2-meter Frazer with only 31 seconds left to go, giving the Tritons a 3-1 lead going into the second period.
“We were very much in control of the game defensively,” Perkins said. “We got lots of shots, it was just a matter of them putting the ball away and we couldn’t.”
This became clear in the second quarter, as San Diego State dominated. Ashley Taylor, Stacy Werner and Rachel Serna all scored, eliminating the gap and lifting the Aztecs to a 4-3 halftime lead.
One aspect of the game that didn’t quite sit right with the girls, as Perkins explained, was that the head coach of the Aztecs was UCSD’s assistant coach the previous year.
“I felt like they had the inside scoop on our team,” she said.
Down by one at the start of the third quarter, the Tritons relied on Hockett, who scored her second goal of the game to tie it with 4:07 left in the period. But it didn’t last long, as the Aztecs took a 6-4 lead with two more successful shots and only 1:58 left to play. Knowing it would take immediate scores, UCSD’s junior 2-meter defender Sarah Bajorek pounded what would be her team’s last goal of the game at 1:23, bringing the Tritons to within one at 6-5. The Tritons had two other opportunities to tie the game, but couldn’t get their pressure shots into the net.
“Those are the shots you remember most, and it’s always frustrating,” junior 2-meter defender Britta Nordstrom said. “But someone’s got to lose, and we played well the whole game up to that point.”
The fight against the Aztecs was minor in comparison to what the team will face when they host the Women’s Western Water Polo Association Tournament from April 28 to 30. Twelve teams will compete for a spot in the NCAA Championships. The top four seeds in order are Loyola Marymount University, UC Davis, Santa Clara State and the host Tritons. The girls feel confident about their chances and are anxious for first-ranked Loyola Marymount University, which they will face in the second match if all goes well.
“That will be the hardest game of the tournament, but we only lost by one point to them last time, so we have a pretty good shot at taking them,” Perkins said. “We’re all pretty nervous, but we are ready for this to happen. The past doesn’t really matter anymore because it all comes down to our performance in the tournament.”
