The Bulldogs clinched the No. 2 seed in the Golden Coast Conference (GCC) Tournament once again with their weekend victory. 

The No. 8 Fresno State water polo team (12-7, 6-1) defeated the No. 21 University of the Pacific Tigers (12-9, 5-2) 12-10 at Chris Kjeldsen Pool on Friday, April 18.

The Bulldogs wrap up their eighth season in the GCC, finishing as the No. 2 seed in the regular season for the second straight year.

“We did our job, and that’s the big part.” said Head Coach Natalie Benson. “The outcome of this game [was] really important for our seeding going into the tournament.”

Under the bright lights, the Bulldogs and Tigers fought tooth and nail all game. Senior attacker Abbey Simshauser led the offense with three goals. Junior attacker Hailey Andress and Senior Utility Brooke Ochoa added two goals of their own. Big contributions from goalie Ida Tully-Giles helped slow a potent Tiger offense. 

“It’s awesome,” Andress said.  “She trusts us to do our job with our blocks and our defense and we trust her just the same.”

The Bulldogs handled their business in an electric matchup between two top-three GCC teams.

“We were a little skittish at the beginning of the game, but that’s to be expected in an environment like this,” Benson said. “[The Tigers] are known for being non-traditional in the way they play, in some ways, but I thought the team handled it pretty well.”

What Happened?

On the Tigers’ senior night, the Bulldogs faced high energy and physicality with both teams trading 5-meter penalty shots to open up the scoring. 

Freshman center Marit van der Kolk stepped in front of a pass, drew an exclusion, and scored the Bulldogs’ third goal of the first period. Her development has been key to the Bulldogs’ success this season. 

“She settled in really quickly as a freshman,” Benson said. “She’s a smart girl, she understands concepts, and she’s willing to be physical in a center-defender position.”

The Bulldogs’ defense and poise created their offense in the first half. Sophomore defender Sidney Strickland tapped home a loose ball on the final possession of the first period to give the Bulldogs a 4-3 lead.

Van der Kolk continued to impose her will on the Tigers in the second period. Her physical defense permeated to the rest of the team, who came up with three clutch blocks on back-to-back possessions. These blocks kept the Tigers’ potent offense at bay. 

Goalie Ida Tully-Giles came up huge for the Bulldogs when the defense lapsed. With the improvement on defense, the Bulldogs are primed for a big run this postseason.

“I have the utmost trust in my team and in myself,” Tully-Giles said. 

The Bulldogs led the Tigers 7-4 heading into the second half of play, but the Tigers clawed back. Three turnovers to start the third period gave the Tiger fans energy that the team used to fight back.

The Bulldogs found their trusty spark on offense from Ochoa, who turned elite defense into offense and quieted the Tiger crowd. The Bulldogs added two more to regain their four-goal advantage.

The Bulldogs won the opening sprint to start the fourth period, but could not open up with a goal. An issue, however, the sprint wins gave the Bulldogs extra possessions at the end of each period that they capitalized on. In a two-goal game, the extra possessions were extra important. 

“We don’t have to score on the first possession,” Benson said. “It’s nice to secure the first possession. Patience with pressure and communicating what we need. I think sometimes we got a little stagnant.”

The Tigers went deep into their bag to confuse the Bulldogs while trailing. They pulled a player to play 5-on-5. The Bulldogs, however, kept their composure. 

The Bulldogs turtled on their final possessions by chewing the clock, which did not allow the quick Tiger offense to mount a comeback. 

In a likely semi-final matchup next week at the GCC tournament, the Bulldogs know that there is still work to be done to achieve their goal.

“We have three days to work on stuff, and then we are going to have a battle in the [semi-final],” Benson said.

What’s Next?

The Bulldogs will begin their quest for a fifth consecutive GCC title at Loyola Marymount University as the No. 2 seed. Their quarterfinal matchup will be on Friday, April 25, against the Concordia University Irvine Golden Eagles at the Burns Aquatic Center.