Score Sheet

San Diego, CA – The #17 Wagner women's water polo team (12-4) upset #12 San Diego State (8-9) 10-9 in an overtime thriller to earn head coach Chris Radmonovich his 100th career win in their first game of the Aztec Invitational hosted by San Diego State.

Radmonovich, currently in his fifth season at the helm, has amassed a career record of 100-60 (62.5% Winning Percentage). In his tenure at Wagner, he has led the program to unparalleled success, guiding the Seahawks to the 2014 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) regular season and post-season championships, along with recent Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) National Top 20 Poll recognition, with the current #17 national ranking being the highest in school history.

In the first game of the invitational, the Green & White were entrenched in a suspense-filled game with host school San Diego State. Wagner was led offensively by a pair of junior centers, Jess Lundgren (Queensland, Australia/ Mountain Creek) and Lily Doerfler (Annapolis, MD/ Broadneck), who each registered a hat trick on the afternoon and senior co-captain Rachel Burns (Auckland, New Zealand/ Diocesan), who delivered the eventual game-winning goal on her lone score of the day.

Goals were hard to come by early in the contest as Wagner led the Aztecs 2-1 at the end of the first stanza. The Seahawks struck first off a goal from Lundgren who was set up from Jessica Burdge (Stockton, CA/ St. Mary's) with 3:04 left in the first period. Aztec sophomore Caroline Israels responded for the host school with a goal just 15 seconds later. The quarter seemed destined to end in a 1-1 tie until Doerfler rattled the cage off an assist from freshman Elise Begg (Newbury Park, CA/ Newbury Park) with 21 ticks left on the clock, giving the Seahawks a 2-1 lead.

The second quarter was hard-fought and played close to the vest as the Aztecs mustered the lone goal of the period as the teams headed to intermission deadlocked at 2-2.

The slow-paced, defensive-minded affair continued in the third period as each team recorded one goal. San Diego State struck early in the third while the Green & White ripped the net late off another score from Doerfler.

The fourth quarter featured the scoring punch that the Seahawks have been known for if late, as Lundgren began the offensive explosion with a steal and a break away that drew a 5 meter penalty shot opportunity. Burdge took and executed the 5 meter penalty shot successfully to give the Seahawks their first lead since the first quarter, at 4-3, with 4:59 left. The Aztecs answered 28 seconds later to tie it at 4-4 before freshman Kimberly Watson (Pointe-Claire, Quebec/ John Rennie) scored as Wagner regained its one-goal advantage. The teams then exchanged goals once again as Loli Benekou tallied for the home team before Lundgren countered for the Seahawks, as Wagner was just 2:57 away from posting the upset with a 6-5 lead.

San Diego State rallied off the energy from their home crowd and quickly netted two goals to take a 7-6 lead with 1:56 left in regulation. Time was dwindling away as the Seahawks were down to their last shot, when Megan Rodriguez (Danville, CA/ San Ramon Valley) found senior co-captain Burdge, who delivered a strike that found the back of the net with only five seconds left, to force overtime.

In the first of two three-minute overtime periods, the Seahawks outscored the Aztecs 2-1 off a key late goal from Doerfler at the buzzer. Lundgren tallied early in the period off an assist from Watson.

San Diego State sophomore Alyssa Diacono registered a goal within the first 30 seconds of the second overtime period to knot the game at 9-9. The focused and determined Seahawks remained calm as they set up the game-winning strike. Lundgren found Burns who rattled the cage with only 50 seconds remainingm for the gam- winning goal as the scoreboard read 10-9 in favor of Wagner.

Sophomore goalie Emily Riddle (Edmonton, Alberta/ Dr. E.P. Scarlett) was a critical factor in the cage as she blocked 11 shots in the game and had many key saves.

The Seahawks are set to square-off with #8 Hawaii at 6:15 PM (Eastern Time) later today.

Goals
Lily Doerfler 3
Jess Lundgren 3
Jessica Burdge 2
Rachel Burns 1
Kimberly Watson 1

History on the Horizon

*Junior Megan Rodriguez is 11 assists away from being the Wagner All-Time Assist Leader


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