Monday, 4/7/97
Sophomores pool strengths, win three weekend games
Top-ranked Bruins blow other teams out of water with excellent
play
By Kristina Wilcox
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
The UCLA women’s water polo team, the top-ranked team in the
country, won all three of its games this weekend – thanks to
impressive sophomore play.
On Friday afternoon the Bruins beat crosstown rival USC, 7-2, in
a game played at the Men’s Gym Pool. Making her return to the
starting squad was junior Nicolle Payne. Payne had been out of
action for almost a month because of a back injury.
Saturday the Bruins (18-1, 6-0 Mountain Pacific Sports
Federation) played two games in San Diego. In the afternoon
matchup, they defeated UC San Diego (2-11) by a score of 10-2.
Sophomore Amanda Gall scored three goals while Serela Mansur
added two of her own in that game.
The Bruins held the Tritons to no goals through part of the
third quarter, when UCSD broke up the 7-0 shutout.
Sophomore Catherine von Schwarz had a four-goal performance in
the Saturday night game versus San Diego State (8-7; 4-2), leading
her team to a 9-4 win.
In all, five Bruins scored during the four quarters.
UCLA got off to a fast start. Sophomore Coralie Simmons scored
the first goal of the match with only 15 seconds off of the game
clock.
But neither team scored again until 54 remained in the quarter,
when Bruin sophomore Mandy McAloon hit one past the Aztec
goalie.
The closest SDSU got in the game was when they scored their
first goal, making it 2-1.
After that, the Bruins just blew the Aztecs out of the
water.
Erin Golasboski, Simmons, von Schwarz, and Mansur scored four
consecutive goals in the second quarter before the Aztecs would put
another point on the scoreboard.
In the third quarter, with the Bruins leading 6-3, von Schwarz
came through with her second goal at the 1:39 mark. She made her
third and fourth goals in the final quarter.
The win over SDSU was UCLA’s eighth consecutive victory over the
Aztecs and the third of the season.