Women's water polo swept all four games played in the first of two conference crossover events in the Midwest Division February 22-23 at the Ohio University Aquatics Center in Athens, Ohio. The Lions defeated Notre Dame 8-3, Miami (Ohio) 23-3, and the host Bobcats 18-4 on Saturday, then stopped the University of Cincinnati 10-4 on Sunday.
In the opening contest of the weekend for Lindenwood against the Fighting Irish, the Lions never trailed, opening up a 3-1 advantage by the end of the first quarter and a 6-1 lead by halftime.
Isabella Boccia scored four goals, had one assist, one field block, and drew three ejections to earn Player of the Game honors.
Paige Miller had two goals, two assists, two steals, and a field block to help the Lindenwood cause.
Naomi Sanders and
Nicole Howe each had one marker for the Lions.
Betsy Zanocco made 11 saves and had a steal to earn the goaltending win.
Lindenwood jumped ahead of the Redhawks in the second game on Saturday and never looked back, opening up a 14-0 lead by halftime, giving head coach
Dave Miller the opportunity to play his bench in the second half. Sophomore
Brooke Teson earned Player of the Game honors with three goals, one assist, and five steals, as 11 different players scored for the Lions, led by
Olivia Coplin with four. Miller and
Maelle Beslic each added three, while Sanders, and
Sydney Walsh had two markers each.
Grace Heppner,
Lillie Schafer,
Kayla Hamilton, and Howe scored once. Zanocco had five saves in goal.
Lindenwood finished the day with another impressive performance against Ohio, building a 10-2 lead by halftime and 17-2 advantage by the end of the third quarter. Coplin was the Player of the Game with three goals, three steals, and an exclusion drawn. Seven different Lions scored in the game, led by Boccia and Sanders each with four. Miller had three, and Walsh, and Hamilton had two each. Zanocco made three saves and had one steal to earn another win in goal.
Lindenwood completed the weekend against the Bearcats on Sunday with Boccia taking Player of the Game honors with six goals and an exclusion drawn. Miller had three goals and Sanders one to pace the Lions to another quick start and 6-1 lead by halftime. Zanocco had eight saves and an assist in goal.
With the four victories, Lindenwood began conference play with a record of 4-0 and improved to 5-1 overall. The Lions return to the pool for the Tina Finali Women's Collegiate Water Polo Invitational February 28-29. Lindenwood is scheduled to play the University of California – East Bay at 7:30 a.m. and Sonoma State University at 1:45 p.m. on Friday, and Chapman University at 3 p.m. and host California Lutheran University at 6:45 p.m. on Saturday in Thousand Oaks, California.
Lindenwood vs. Notre Dame Video
Lindenwood vs. Cincinnati Video
