Feb. 26, 2007
Final Stats
Loudonville, N.Y. - The Siena (4-1) women's water polo team took third place at the Chapman Invitational in Orange, Calif. this weekend after posing a 3-1 tournament record. Sophomore utility player Lauren Garrigan was named to the All-Tournament team for her dominant performance on both ends of the pool.
Earlier today, the Saints were delivered their first loss of the 2007 campaign in a 10-9 sudden death defeat at the hands of Whittier College. Garrigan exploded for nine points which included four goals and five assists in the losing effort.
"This was a mentally challenging game," said head coach Rob Swingle. "It was like a chess match. I think our team responded well and stepped up to the challenge. Overall, this game was a great experience and will benefit us down the road."
Siena fell behind 4-3 by the end of the first quarter, but then rallied for four unanswered goals in the second quarter to take a 7-4 lead into the half. Junior goaltender Kaedy Graves anchored the Saints defense registering 10 saves and four steals on the contest.
Whittier forced overtime by outscoring the Saints 4-to-1 in the second half to tie the game at eight apiece. This marked the third overtime game Siena has played this season.
Whittier struck first in overtime taking a slight 9-8 edge. Then with just four seconds left, Biehle connected on her fourth goal of the game to send the contest into the second overtime session. Both squads stepped up on the defensive end of the pool holding each other scoreless through the second OT forcing sudden death. Whittier would tally the game winner soon thereafter to get past the Saints.
In the consolation game, the Saints prevailed posting a 14-11 victory over the UC San Diego club team. Biehle registered individual game program records scoring eight goals and drawing 5 ejections in the Saints winning effort.
"I am really proud of the girl's effort today," Swingle said. "We battled hard and maintained control throughout the second half."
The Saints found themselves down 9-5 at the half, but five unanswered goals in the third quarter put the Saints back on top 10-9. With 4:17 on the clock, Garrigan evened the game a 9-9 when she blasted one past the UC San Diego goaltender. Then just over two minutes later, Biehle registered the game winning goal at the 2:01 mark proving to be enough to send the Saints off with a 14-11 victory over UC San Diego.
Lisa Reilly and Graves shared time in net for the Saints. Reilly finished with seven saves and two steals, while Graves managed four saves. The Saints struggled with extra man advantage opportunities going 1-for-7 to UC San Diego's 4-for-7 mark.
With the victory, the Saints improve to 4-1 on the season. They return to action tomorrow when they face Claremont-Mudd-Scripps at 10 p.m. EST.
