FRESNO, Calif. - The No. 6 Fresno State water polo team opens up Golden Coast Conference play at the Aquatics Center on Saturday afternoon, hosting CBU at 12 p.m. PT.
No. 6 Fresno State (12-5, 0-0 GCC) vs. CBU (6-11, 1-0 GCC)
March 9, 2024 - 12 P.M. PT - Fresno, Calif. - Fresno State Aquatics Center
Live Stats: TheFosh
Watch: Mountain West Network
Admission: FREE
Twitter: @FresnoStateWP
Series History: Fresno State leads 8-1
Last Meeting: Fresno State def. CBU 14-9 at the GCC Championships (4.28.23)
Bulldog Bones
Fresno State opens conference play against CBU this Saturday. The Bulldogs are one of three teams in the conference to not play a league game entering this week.
Fresno State competes for its fourth-straight GCC title in 2024.
The Bulldogs have not lost a true conference game since March 27, 2021 in a 13-12 loss to San Diego State on the road.
Fresno State has a streak of 17 consecutive regular season conference wins.
The Bulldogs however did fall to a conference opponent this season, in a non-conference meeting. LMU defeated Fresno State 10-7 in the first game of the Triton Invitational.
Fresno State is also riding a 12-game home winning streak, dating back to January of 2023.
The Bulldogs earned a No. 6 ranking in this week's CWPA team rankings, following a pair of losses at the Barbara Kalbus Invitational. However, this season has been a memorable one as the team earned its highest ranking in program history with a No. 3 ranking earlier this season.
Of Fresno State's 12 wins, eight have been against ranked opponents.
Hot start
Fresno State had a hot start to the 2024 season, winning six-straight to open the season. The Bulldogs opened the season with their first-ever win over Michigan, defeating the No. 13 team in the country 11-10 in Fresno on Jan. 20.
The Bulldogs have twice defeated the No. 1 team in the country this season. First, taking down Stanford 11-10 on Jan. 21. It was the first time in program history that the Bulldogs defeated the Cardinal. Fresno State then defeated USC at the Triton Invitational on Feb. 3. Fresno State became just the second school since water polo became an NCAA sport in 2001 to defeat both Stanford and USC in the same season. Second-ranked Hawai'i became the third with a win over both teams in 2024 as well.
Shooters Shoot
Shooters shoot, and Hailey Andress is a shooter.
The sophomore Bulldog leads the team in scoring with 45 goals. She also leads the team (by a lot) with 104 shots. She had led the team in shots in 11 games this year, and goals in nine. Andress ranks third in the conference and 10th in the nation in goals scored entering this week's contest.
Andress is just three goals away from her 100th career goal, in only a year and a half (44 games).
Andress has an active streak of 37 consecutive games with at least one goal, dating back to January 29, 2023.
In her career, Andress has just three games without a goal scored.
21, can you do something for me?
True freshman Kira Anderson has gained valuable experience in the first half of the season, appearing in 16 games. Her stat line shows 19 shots, 11 goals and 12 assists. Her .579 shooting percentage is the highest on the team among players with over 15 shot attempts.
Anderson is one of four true freshmen to see play time for the Bulldogs this season.
They fit right in
Joining Anderson as true freshmen in the rotation are Caitlyn Mossman, Sidney Strickland and Ida Tully-Giles. Mossman has done her part, playing in 13 games with 14 goals and 12 drawn exclusions. Strickland has seen some action, adding five points (three goals, two assists) for the 'Dogs in seven games played. Tully-Giles has totaled 67:52 minutes in the cage this season, grabbing 15 saves and allowing 11 goals.
When looking at transfers, the two newcomers have added experience for the 'Dogs. Abbey Simshauser is the team's current leader in points with 60 (43 goals, 17 assists). She also adds 24 drawn exclusions and 28 steals. Robyn Greenslade added 14 goals this season.
The queen of the drawn exclusion
Sophomore Ashley Williams has 30 drawn exclusions this season, already enough for ninth in a single season in program history.
In the last two games, she has had eight (vs Long Beach State) and seven (vs USC), respectively. Eight drawn exclusions are the second-most in a game in program history. The record of nine was set by Emily Nicholson, twice. Nicholson is the only Bulldog in program history, before Williams, to have seven or more in a single game.
She had 16 drawn exclusions last season as a freshman. 46 drawn exclusions puts her fourth all-time for career drawn exclusions.
A moment for the head coach
Fresno State head coach Natalie Benson has built the program from the ground up, hired as the programs first head coach in 2016 for its inaugural season in 2018.
Since then, Benson has compiled a 91-68 record for the program. She has been named the Golden Coast Conference Coach of the Year three times, and was recognized with the Sandy Nitta Distinguished Coaching National Award in 2022.
Looking ahead
Fresno State is home for two weeks, first hosting CBU this weekend and San Diego State next weekend (March 16) at the Aquatics Center. The Bulldogs will see their first road test of conference play at LMU on March 23.