March 2, 2006
SAN DIEGO -
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SDSU Water Polo to Entertain Pacific and Occidental College in a Saturday Doubleheader
After playing six matches in four consecutive days in three different cities, No. 7 San Diego State (6-4 overall; 1-1 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) returns to The Salvation Army Kroc Center for a doubleheader against MPSF foe Pacific and Occidental College, Saturday, March 4. The Aztecs and Tigers will get underway at 11 a.m. PST, while the SDSU-Occidental match is set for a 4 p.m. start. Sandwiched between the two games will be UOP vs. Occidental at 2 p.m.
San Diego State is coming off a busy weekend that started Thursday, Feb. 23, with a 7-3 loss to fifth-ranked Hawaii and then an 11-5 win the very next day at No. 19 CS Northridge. Following a 1-1 start to the weekend, the Aztecs traveled to the Gaucho Invitational in Santa Barbara, Calif., and started the annual tournament with a 4-2 win over No. 8 Arizona State and ended it with a 9-6 victory against No. 10 San Jose State to finish seventh of 16 teams. In between its two wins, SDSU fell to top-ranked USC, 11-5, and to No. 4 Loyola Marymount, 7-6.
After this weekend, the Aztecs will host No. 7 Long Beach State at the Kroc Center next Saturday, March 11, at noon.
Stingy `D'
The Aztecs' defense has been stingy so far this season as they rank seventh nationally and third in the MPSF in goals allowed per game at 6.1. When you take into account those schools that have played at least 10 games, they are fifth in America.
A major reason why SDSU ranks among the nation's elite is the way the Aztecs open and close games. Through 10 games, San Diego State is allowing an average of 1.1 goals in the first period. The Aztecs' fourth quarter performance is even better allowing just 0.9 goals to close out contests.
Goalkeeper Sarah Kilgore, the Aztecs' last line of defense, has played well of late, accumlating 69 saves in 10 games. She ranks in the middle of the pack of the MPSF in goals against average (6th, 6.15) and saves (7th, 6.90).
Serna Scores
Rachel Serna has picked up where she left off from last year's All-America season where she scored the eighth-most goals in a season in school history (65) as she has already netted a team-leading 15 goals. Nationally, the senior from Coronado ranks 44th in scoring and is 19th in the conference in goals per game.
Against No. 10 San Jose State in the seventh-place game of the Gaucho Invitational on Feb. 26, Serna scored five goals for the second time in her career in the 9-6 win. Oddly enough, the first time she scored five in game was at the Gaucho Invite one year ago to the day on Feb. 26, 2005, against UC Irvine. In both instances, the Aztecs were victorious.
Droppin' Dimes
Elana Cervantes set the school record for assists in a season (56) last year and is well on her way to setting the school record. Former Aztec Dominique Delgado is the all-time leader with 126 and Cervantes is not far behind as she has recorded 91 in two-plus seasons. The junior from Davis, Calif., needs only four more to tie Holly Hartzell for third all time in school history.
I'll Take That
Similar to Rachel Serna and Elana Cervantes, Stacy Werner leads the team in steals after she led the 2005 squad with 53. So far this season, the junior has 19 steals for an average of 1.9 per game. She also ranks second on the team in assists with nine and third on the team in scoring with eight. She has 86 steals for her career and needs only 20 more to tie Rachel Scott for 10th all-time in SDSU history.
Freshman Contributions
This year's highly-touted freshman class has been counted on to contribute immediately and they have not disappointed. Four Aztecs have played in all 10 games (Anna Gonzales, Erinn Greenwood, Jenna Schuster and Ashling Taylor) with Gonzales receiving the starting nod in every game up to this point. Three other freshmen, Erin Lester (three games), Nicole Louie (three games) and Jessica Pace (four games) have also seen playing time throughout the course of the season. Combined, the class has accounted for 16 of the team's 63 goals (25.4 percent), 16 assists and 17 steals. Taylor leads the group with seven goals and led the team in scoring in three straight games earlier this year.
These Are Losses?
San Diego State has played some close games this season, with the majority falling its way. On the other hand, the Aztecs have lost two contests by a single goal to Long Beach State and Loyola Marymount and one by four goals to Hawaii. Three of San Diego State's four losses have come to top-5 teams and all four have come against top-10 competition. With a break here or there, SDSU could easily be a one- or two-loss ballclub.
Comeback Kids
Even with some of the tough losses this year, the Aztecs have been able to put the past behind them and rebound fairly well. Three of the four times this season, San Diego State has responded with a win after a loss (3-1). Following the loss against Long Beach State, SDSU came back with a 6-5 victory over UCSB. After a 7-3 defeat against Hawaii, CS Northridge was just what the doctor ordered as the Aztecs collected an 11-5 win. And after a tough one-goal loss to LMU, the scarlet and black put forth a 9-6 effort against SJSU.
Scouting Pacific
Pacific embarks on a four-match road swing with its first stop at No. 8 Arizona State on March 3 before heading to San Diego. The Tigers (0-6; 0-3 MPSF) have had problems defending this year, having allowed at least 12 goals in each of their contests, while giving up an average of 15.5 goals per game, a figure that ranks last in the nation. UOP is also last in America with its 3.7 goals scored per game. The Tigers are led by sophomore Kellie Fletcher who has scored 11 goals in six games, while senior Julie Snyder has netted nine.
Scouting Occidental College
Occidental College is currently ranked No. 4 in the National Collegiate Women's Division III Top 10 Poll released March 1. The Tigers will be playing their first matches of the season when they take on Pacific and SDSU this Saturday. Last season, Oxy finished 19-14 overall and 7-3 in Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
Aztecs in the Polls
SDSU entered the 2006 Women's Collegiate Top 20 Water Polo Preseason Poll at the No. 9 spot and has recently moved up to No. 7 in the latest poll released March 1, as a result of going 3-3 last week and registering wins against No. 19 CS Northridge, No. 8 Arizona State and No. 10 San Jose State and a seventh-place finish at the Gaucho Invitational. The No. 7 ranking is the highest the Aztecs have been ranked since the sixth game of 2005 when they were rated the seventh-best team nationally.
Welcome Back
The Aztecs return 10 letterwinners and welcomes back 77 percent of its scoring from last year's squad. Most notably, SDSU returns senior and 2005 All-America selection Rachel Serna, and juniors Elana Cervantes and Stacy Werner. The trio combined to score a total of 136 goals with Serna scoring 65, the eighth most in school history, Werner netting 36 goals and Cervantes finding the back of the net 35 times. This season, the group has scored 32 of the team's 63 goals (50.8 percent).