Long Beach State University Athletics
Long Beach State University
CSUN
No. 14 Long Beach State Earns 10-8 Overtime Win Against No. 19 CSUN on Senior Day
3/31/2018 12:00:00 AM | Women's Water Polo
LONG BEACH -- Senior Virginia Smith lead No. 14 Long Beach State to a 10-8 overtime victory against No. 19 CSUN on Saturday afternoon at the Ken Lindgren Aquatics Center on Senior Day as she scored four goals, including the eventual game-winner, and two key steals.
The Beach (11-11) improve to 5-0 when playing at home and move to 2-1 in Big West Conference action. Meanwhile, the Matadors drop to 15-3 overall and 0-2 in league play.
The Matadors struck first as Katelyn Fairchild opened the game with a goal at 4:19. CSUN's lead would not last long, however, as Smith notched her first goal of the contest at 2:54 to even the score at 1-1. But just 19 seconds later, the Matadors would regain their lead on a goal by Madeleine Sanchez to take a 2-1 lead into the second quarter.
Long Beach State notched three goals in the second to jump out in front to a 4-2 advantage as Annabel Harman got the offense going with back-to-back goals, while Maria Eleni Mimidi capped the Beach's scoring in the frame with a tally at 2:46. However, CSUN countered with a pair of goals of its own to send the match into halftime knotted at 4-4.
The battle continued into the second half as CSUN and Long Beach State traded goals to start the frame. Tied at 5-5, CSUN registered back-to-back goals by Fairchild and Shannon Hovanesian to go up 7-5. With 14 seconds remaining in the third, Smith hit the back of the net to pull the Beach within one (7-6) heading into the fourth quarter.
The fourth was a defensive fight between the conference foes. The Beach held the Matadors scoreless in the frame, and a key goal by Alex Massier at 6:58 tied the game at 7-7 forcing overtime.
Just 31 seconds into the first overtime period, Long Beach State's Tori Morrissey gave the Beach an 8-7 with a shot to the back of the net. With just 34 seconds left in the first overtime, Smith added to her total with her fourth goal of the game to give LBSU a 9-7 advantage.
The goal by Smith proved to be key as CSUN's Fairchild tallied a goal at 1:36 in the second overtime period to cut the Beach's lead down to one (9-8). With the clock running down, Massier struck the back of the net as the clock expired to give Long Beach State a 10-8 victory.
The Beach will be back in action on Saturday, April 7 at Hawaii at 6 p.m.
Box Score:
No. 14 Long Beach State -- 1, 3, 2, 1, 2, 1 | 10
No. 19 CSUN -- 2, 2, 3, 0, 0, 1 | 8
Goals: Smith 4, Massier 2, Harman 2, Mimidi, Morrissey
