Wednesday, March 28
Riverside, Calif.
4:00 PM
California Baptist University
9
vs
8
Azusa Pacific
Photo by: Conner Schuh
Crazy Comeback Downs Cougars
3/28/2018 8:44:00 PM | Women's Water Polo
BOX SCORE
RIVERSIDE, Calif. – It was bound to be a battle between California Baptist University and Azusa Pacific, with both of the Golden Coast Conference rivals coming into the day ranked in the NCAA top-25.
Without two key players available and facing a four-goal deficit in the second quarter, it was an even tougher task for the 23rd-ranked Lancers on Wednesday. CBU overcame every obstacle, including a two-goal deficit going into the fourth quarter, to defeat Azusa Pacific, 9-8, at the Lancer Aquatics Center.
"We showed a lot of patience and resiliency to stay with it, not try to do too much, but to slowly build our way back into it, so in the fourth quarter we were in position to finish it out," Coach Jon Miller said. "They didn't panic, they trusted each other to get the job done throughout the game."
Kira O'Donell led the Lancers' comeback with six points on three goals, three assists and a steal. Three others: Annie Eubanks, Allie Coleman and Vickie Ochoa scored twice in the game for CBU, which also received two assists and two drawn ejections from Jocelyn Schwegler.
"Kira really helped set the tempo for our group," Miller said. "She did a really good job defensively, containing her matchup. She came up with the big plays when we needed it, she's done that all year. We had a lot of players turn in good games today, though."
Eubanks added three steals and two drawn ejections, while Coleman had an assist and two steals to help the Lancers improve to 14-13, 2-1 in the GCC and drop the Cougars to 13-13, 1-3. It gives CBU its fourth one-goal victory of the year.
"I honestly think we play best in these kind of games because are motivated and determined to finish it," O'Donell said. "When we are pretty even, it's exciting.
"We kept telling each other, 'We got this,' this our home pool, we have to defend it -- we take prided in that."
It came down to execution for both sides, with CBU making plays when it mattered most and forcing Azusa Pacific out of rhythm. The Cougars once led by as many as four, were up 6-3 at halftime and then 7-5 going into the fourth quarter.
Although they may not have scored, CBU received big contributions from Krista Krantz, Morgan Baker, Katie Fugit and Amy Branch. It was a team effort to make up for the absence of four regular contributors, who missed all or most of the game on Wednesday.
"We had a lot of players step up and take on defensive matchups when we were shorthanded," Miller said. "Everyone stepped up and took on their challenges."
The Lancers outscored APU 4-1 over the final eight minutes for the dramatic comeback win, but the surge back started much earlier for CBU. Oddly enough, the tides seemed to turn when the Lancers were on defense.
APU was cruising up 5-1 and then threatened to extend its lead when it drew a penalty shot with 5:30 left in the second quarter. The Cougars completely missed the cage on the five-meter penalty shot and it gave the Lancers a boost.
Fifteen seconds later, Eubanks went on a 2-0 run by herself for CBU. Both of Eubanks' goals came on assists and drives. The first time she took a pass from Schwegler and then lobbed it into the goal right in front of the cage. Sixty-three seconds after that, O'Donell fed Eubanks right in the middle of the pool and she skipped the shot home to make it 5-3 with 4:12 left in the first half.
"We knew they were going to come in and be fired up, they've had a really good season and this is always a tough game," Miller said of APU. "They played a really good first quarter, I don't think they missed a shot."
CBU scored first coming out of halftime. The Lancers drew a power play and Coleman scored it off a Branch assist to make it 6-4 less than a minute into the third quarter. CBU kept it a two-goal game, 7-5, when O'Donell came up with a steal near the halfway point of the pool that set her up on a breakaway she finished on the near post.
Another power-play goal cut CBU's deficit to one, 7-6, to start the fourth quarter. Coleman provided the goal when she fired a cross-cage shot off the far post that barred in beautifully 29 seconds into the quarter.
The Lancers kept pushing and fought all the way back to tie the game, 7-7, with 3:54 to play. O'Donell notched the equalizer with a skip shot that went off the goalie's hand, but the ball just creeped into the goal.
"We executed well down the stretch. We were able to take advantage of the momentum we had and not give it back," Miller said. "We came up with some plays in the end that could have gone 50-50. You just hope you have the momentum in the end of a game like this."
Just over a minute later, CBU took its first lead of the game. The Cougars drew an ejection in transition for a two-on-one breakaway, but their ensuing shot missed the cage entirely to put the Lancers back on the counter attack.
O'Donell pushed the ball in transition and then passed to an open Ochoa right outside two-meters, where the true freshman center buried it near post for an 8-7 CBU advantage. O'Donell provided the dagger with 38 seconds left when she beat the goalie near post with a skip shot once again for a 9-7 Lancer lead.
"It was just changing my shot placement. I was really in my head and frustrated with myself," O'Donell said of the key to her game after she missed a few opportunities early in the game. "I started skipping the ball and getting out of my head. The key for me was all the encouragement from my teammates, they never stopped encouraging me."
CBU's defense came up big down the stretch, as well. The Lancers killed a Cougar power play with 1:38 left when APU's shot was blocked by CBU goalie Grace Ramirez. Azusa Pacific had a chance to tie the game again when it called timeout and drew up a play with 55 seconds left. CBU's defense left the Cougars flustered and they settled for a deep shot that was a routine save for Ramirez – her 10th of the game.
"Offensively, we had a lot of opportunities early that weren't falling. We just wanted to stick to our game plan, trust that those shots would fall eventually and they did," Miller said. "We got it done in all different phases, Grace did a great job defensively in the second half."
Check out O'Donell's post-game thoughts at CBU Lancers on Facebook:
RIVERSIDE, Calif. – It was bound to be a battle between California Baptist University and Azusa Pacific, with both of the Golden Coast Conference rivals coming into the day ranked in the NCAA top-25.
Without two key players available and facing a four-goal deficit in the second quarter, it was an even tougher task for the 23rd-ranked Lancers on Wednesday. CBU overcame every obstacle, including a two-goal deficit going into the fourth quarter, to defeat Azusa Pacific, 9-8, at the Lancer Aquatics Center.
"We showed a lot of patience and resiliency to stay with it, not try to do too much, but to slowly build our way back into it, so in the fourth quarter we were in position to finish it out," Coach Jon Miller said. "They didn't panic, they trusted each other to get the job done throughout the game."
WWP: @LancersWWP puts together a big comeback for a big 9-8 W in @GCCWP over rival @APUCougars. Kira O'Donell leads the way with six points. pic.twitter.com/xiZo5QtSfc
— CBU Lancers (@CBULancers) March 29, 2018
Kira O'Donell led the Lancers' comeback with six points on three goals, three assists and a steal. Three others: Annie Eubanks, Allie Coleman and Vickie Ochoa scored twice in the game for CBU, which also received two assists and two drawn ejections from Jocelyn Schwegler.
"Kira really helped set the tempo for our group," Miller said. "She did a really good job defensively, containing her matchup. She came up with the big plays when we needed it, she's done that all year. We had a lot of players turn in good games today, though."
Eubanks added three steals and two drawn ejections, while Coleman had an assist and two steals to help the Lancers improve to 14-13, 2-1 in the GCC and drop the Cougars to 13-13, 1-3. It gives CBU its fourth one-goal victory of the year.
"I honestly think we play best in these kind of games because are motivated and determined to finish it," O'Donell said. "When we are pretty even, it's exciting.
"We kept telling each other, 'We got this,' this our home pool, we have to defend it -- we take prided in that."
It came down to execution for both sides, with CBU making plays when it mattered most and forcing Azusa Pacific out of rhythm. The Cougars once led by as many as four, were up 6-3 at halftime and then 7-5 going into the fourth quarter.
Although they may not have scored, CBU received big contributions from Krista Krantz, Morgan Baker, Katie Fugit and Amy Branch. It was a team effort to make up for the absence of four regular contributors, who missed all or most of the game on Wednesday.
"We had a lot of players step up and take on defensive matchups when we were shorthanded," Miller said. "Everyone stepped up and took on their challenges."
The Lancers outscored APU 4-1 over the final eight minutes for the dramatic comeback win, but the surge back started much earlier for CBU. Oddly enough, the tides seemed to turn when the Lancers were on defense.
APU was cruising up 5-1 and then threatened to extend its lead when it drew a penalty shot with 5:30 left in the second quarter. The Cougars completely missed the cage on the five-meter penalty shot and it gave the Lancers a boost.
Fifteen seconds later, Eubanks went on a 2-0 run by herself for CBU. Both of Eubanks' goals came on assists and drives. The first time she took a pass from Schwegler and then lobbed it into the goal right in front of the cage. Sixty-three seconds after that, O'Donell fed Eubanks right in the middle of the pool and she skipped the shot home to make it 5-3 with 4:12 left in the first half.
"We knew they were going to come in and be fired up, they've had a really good season and this is always a tough game," Miller said of APU. "They played a really good first quarter, I don't think they missed a shot."
CBU scored first coming out of halftime. The Lancers drew a power play and Coleman scored it off a Branch assist to make it 6-4 less than a minute into the third quarter. CBU kept it a two-goal game, 7-5, when O'Donell came up with a steal near the halfway point of the pool that set her up on a breakaway she finished on the near post.
Another power-play goal cut CBU's deficit to one, 7-6, to start the fourth quarter. Coleman provided the goal when she fired a cross-cage shot off the far post that barred in beautifully 29 seconds into the quarter.
The Lancers kept pushing and fought all the way back to tie the game, 7-7, with 3:54 to play. O'Donell notched the equalizer with a skip shot that went off the goalie's hand, but the ball just creeped into the goal.
"We executed well down the stretch. We were able to take advantage of the momentum we had and not give it back," Miller said. "We came up with some plays in the end that could have gone 50-50. You just hope you have the momentum in the end of a game like this."
Just over a minute later, CBU took its first lead of the game. The Cougars drew an ejection in transition for a two-on-one breakaway, but their ensuing shot missed the cage entirely to put the Lancers back on the counter attack.
O'Donell pushed the ball in transition and then passed to an open Ochoa right outside two-meters, where the true freshman center buried it near post for an 8-7 CBU advantage. O'Donell provided the dagger with 38 seconds left when she beat the goalie near post with a skip shot once again for a 9-7 Lancer lead.
"It was just changing my shot placement. I was really in my head and frustrated with myself," O'Donell said of the key to her game after she missed a few opportunities early in the game. "I started skipping the ball and getting out of my head. The key for me was all the encouragement from my teammates, they never stopped encouraging me."
CBU's defense came up big down the stretch, as well. The Lancers killed a Cougar power play with 1:38 left when APU's shot was blocked by CBU goalie Grace Ramirez. Azusa Pacific had a chance to tie the game again when it called timeout and drew up a play with 55 seconds left. CBU's defense left the Cougars flustered and they settled for a deep shot that was a routine save for Ramirez – her 10th of the game.
"Offensively, we had a lot of opportunities early that weren't falling. We just wanted to stick to our game plan, trust that those shots would fall eventually and they did," Miller said. "We got it done in all different phases, Grace did a great job defensively in the second half."
Check out O'Donell's post-game thoughts at CBU Lancers on Facebook:
Players Mentioned
UT
/ Women's Water Polo
ATT
/ Women's Water Polo
DR
/ Women's Water Polo
DR
/ Women's Water Polo
ATT
/ Women's Water Polo
ATT
/ Women's Water Polo
2M
/ Women's Water Polo
ATT
/ Women's Water Polo
G
/ Women's Water Polo
2MD
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