By No. 17 Long Beach ended its weekend in thrilling fashion, beating No. 13 San Jose State 8-7 Sunday in sudden death overtime with a goal from freshman defender Sarah Barker.
The Long Beach State women’s water polo team finished 13th in the Barbara Kalbus Invitational hosted by UC Irvine, after going 2-2 in the three-day tournament.
Long Beach kicked off the tournament on a lower note, losing to No. 3 UCLA 16-6 Friday at UC Irvine. Hertzka, Mimidi, Morrissey, Barker, Harman each had one goal while Patras had eight saves.
Freshman attacker Orsi Hertzka, senior defender Annabel Harman and senior attacker Tori Morrissey led the 49ers with two goals apiece, while Barker and junior utility Maria Eleni Mimidi each had one goal. Junior goalie Eirini Patras was a force in the cage, totaling 18 saves, two of which came off five-meter shots.
“The fourth game of the tournament is always kind of hard mentally, so I’m more happy about the fact that we came and competed and ultimately won against a team that beat us the first weekend [of the season],” head coach Gavin Arroyo said.
This meeting marked the second time both teams met, with the Spartans winning the first meeting 15-8 Jan. 27 in the Cal Tournament.
“San Jose is a very good team and they have very good shots. It’s always a good game against them and they make us better,” Patras said.
Earlier in the tournament, Long Beach went 1-2, beating Big West foe CSUN 12-5 Saturday, but losing 14-13 to Loyola Marymount. The meeting against the Lions marked the second time the 49ers lost to them, dropping the match 10-9 Feb. 9 in the Tritons Invite Tournament at UC San Diego.
Against the Matadors, the 49ers’ Mimidi, Harman, junior center Paige Bennett and sophomore attacker Olivia Grim each scored two goals while freshman attacker Katie Dill, Barker, Hertzka and Morrissey each scored one goal for Long Beach.
Grim and Hertzka both had hat tricks against the Lions. Freshman defender Gabriella Matafora-Adams netted two goals, and Mimidi, Dill, Harman, Barker and Morrissey each chipped in one goal.
Long Beach will travel to Ann Arbor to play in the Wolverine Invitational at the University of Michigan Saturday through Sunday. Opponents and times of games will be determined later on in the week.
