IRVINE, Calif. - The Concordia women's water polo team faced two back-to back challenges in Saturday's games against No. 8 Fresno State and No. 15 UC Santa Barbara. 

The Green and the Gold held off the Bulldogs offense in the first half of the match. Tamsyn Evezard, Abby Mammen, and Sofia Smith scored the first CUI goals of the day. The first goal was on even strength, the other two on power-plays. In the third, Tessa Tavaglione found the back of the cage to make it CUI 5, FPU 6.  

Although Concordia outscored Fresno State initially, the Bulldogs made a comeback and found their groove. Spreading the wealth, Tessa Tavaglione sent a pass to Andie Perreira who scored her second goal of the match. Thanks to Tess Henke, Tavaglione followed seconds later with her own shot to the cage. The Bulldogs furthered the gap until the clock expired. Fresno State won the first match 14-7. 

The last time CUI faced UCSB was at the UCSD Triton Invitational. Concordia kept it close with a final score of 6-9. The rematch would be a three-point difference as well. 

Freshman goalie Jaden Soto had an astonishing performance for the day and secured a career-high 18 saves in the match against the Gauchos. Defense kept the Concordia offense alive, and the momentum continuously shifted back in the Golden Eagles' favor. Soto's presence was unforgettable, and Allie Gaetano had many forced turnovers to steal the energy back for CUI. 

UCSB managed to slow down the CUI offense in the first period, but key goals from Abby Mammen, Tamsyn Evezard, Andie Perreira, Sofia Smith secured Concordia's spot on the board.  

The Guachos broke away with a final goal in the remaining twenty seconds to secure the win. Keeping it a three-point game, the final score was CUI 4 – UCSB 7. 

The Golden Eagles are on the hunt for a win! Next up is the makeup match against San Diego State on April 12 at 12:00 pm. 

CLICK HERE for the full 2024 women's water polo schedule.