Courtesy: USC Athletics
LOS ANGELES — The No. 1 USC women’s water polo team churned out a balanced home win with a dominant 20-4 victory over visiting No. 15 Loyola Marymount tonight at Uytengsu Aquatics Center. Twelve different Trojans scored while the USC defense stayed stingy to tack up another home victory an improve to 23-1 overall on the year.
USC seniors Bayley Weber and Grace Tehaney led the way on the offensive end with three goals apiece, and four other Trojans — Julia Janov, Alejandra Aznar, Claire Haas and Téa Poljak — added two each in the high-powered affair. Goalie Carolyne Stern and Jada Ward split time in the cage, with Stern tallying five saves while giving up just a single goal in the first half. Ward took over in the second half, making a huge 5-meter penalty stop along the way.
USC scored the first eight goals of the day with Weber and Janov tallying two each in the early surge. LMU broke its silence with a strike midway through the second period, only to see USC score four straight from there. Haas’ first of two goals came to open the second half and make it a 12-1 USC advantage. A five-goal USC rally followed LMU’s second goal of the game as Weber and Tehaney worked their ways into hat tricks on the day. In the fourth, freshmen Alex Bonaguidi and Maggie Johnson joined the scoresheet before Haas had the final word of the game in rounding out USC’s 20-4 win.
NEXT:
USC closes out its home competition for the year on Saturday (April 15), as the top-ranked Trojans celebrate Senior Day ahead of an MPSF matchup against Arizona State at 1 p.m.
NOTABLE:
– With three goals today, Bayley Weber continues to lead the team in multiple-goal games, now with 19 this season.
– Weber also leads the team with goals in 22 games this season.
– USC is now 33-0 all-time against LMU in a series dating back to 1995.
#1 USC vs. #15 LMU
April 13, 2023 | Uytengsu Aquatics Center
USC 4 – 7 – 5 – 4 = 20
LMU 0 – 1 – 2 – 1 = 4
SCORING:
USC — Bayley Weber 3, Grace Tehaney 3, Julia Janov 2, Alejandra Aznar 2, Claire Haas 2, Téa Poljak 2, Honnie Vandeweghe-O’Shea, Mireia Guiral, Tilly Kearns, Alejandra Aznar, Fanni Muzsnay, Alex Bonaguidi, Maggie Johnson.
LMU — Sofia Kadifa 2, Mollie Williams, Ruth Arino Ruiz.
SAVES: Carolyne Stern (USC) 5 [1st half], Jada Ward (USC) 3 [2nd half], Madison Davis (LMU) 7 [3 periods], Talia Herbermann (LMU) 1 [4th period].