IRVINE, Calif. – The No. 3 Fresno State water polo team split its games on day two of the Barbara Kalbus Invitational, first falling to No. 6 Cal 9-5 then defeating No. 12 Long Beach State in overtime, 12-9.
Fresno State will face No. 5 USC for fifth place of the Barbara Kalbus Invitational tomorrow at 10:15 a.m. PT.
How it happened vs. Cal
Fresno State attacked hard against the Bears, but nothing was falling. The Bulldogs took 35 shots in game one, while only scoring five goals. The five goals were scored by five different Bulldogs.
Cal jumped to a 3-0 lead before Abbey Simshauser scored her goal with 1:52 left in the first quarter. Cal outscored the 'Dogs 3-1 again in the second as Hailey Andress netted the lone goal for the Bulldogs. Fresno State trailed 6-2 at halftime.
The third quarter was the closest of the game, as Cal took a 3-2 advantage in goals. Fresno State saw its goals scored by Ashley Williams and Paula Nieto Jasny. The senior keeper fired hers in with one second left in the quarter.
Fresno State scored the only goal of the fourth quarter in a shot by Brooke Ochoa with 6:34 left in the final period. It was a defensive battle to close out the game as Cal came out on top, 9-5.
How it happened vs. Long Beach State
The Bulldogs bounced back in their afternoon game, defeating Long Beach State in overtime. Fresno State had a balanced attack against LBSU with six different goal-scorers.
Fresno State was out to a 3-0 lead behind two goals from Abbey Simshauser and an additional one from Brooke Ochoa. Long Beach State scored their first with 4:01 remaining in the opening period, but Robyn Greenslade responded immediately to extend the Bulldog lead to 4-1. LBSU scored one more in the period for a 4-2 Fresno State lead at the break.
The second quarter was a slow one, only seeing three total goals. Hailey Andress and Simshauser scored one each, both on 6-on-5 advantages. Fresno State led 6-3 into halftime.
The teams tied 2-2 in the third quarter for a balanced attack. Andress and Kaitlin Howarth tacked on goals for the 'Dogs to take a 8-5 lead into the final quarter of regulation.
LBSU scored three in-a-row to open up the fourth quarter and tie the game at eight. They took their first lead of the game with a goal at the 3:16 mark, but Simshauser responded with a goal 15 seconds later to tie things up. Defense would battle to send the game to overtime.
Simshauser scored two goals in the first overtime period while the Bulldog defense didn't allow a score to LBSU. Cynthia Rosa scored the insurance goal in the second overtime period to cement the score.
Notable
Fresno State played in its first overtime game of the season on Saturday, defeating Long Beach State.
Fresno State is 3-2 in overtime games in program history.
Saturday was Fresno State's first overtime game since March 26, 2022.
Fresno State has won its last three overtime games.
Fresno State had its closest game with Cal in the series history.
Fresno State moves to 5-1 in the series with Long Beach State.
Abbey Simshauser shot a career-high six goals against Long Beach State.
Simshauser also had a career-high 10 shots against Long Beach State.
Up Next
Fresno State will face No. 5 USC for fifth place in the Barbara Kalbus Invitational at 10:15 a.m. PT tomorrow. Live scoring is available on The FOSH.
More information can be found on the Tournament Central.