HONOLULU - The eighth-ranked University of Hawai'i women's water polo team came up short, 8-5, in a Mountain Pacific Sports Federation match against No. 4 Long Beach State, Thursday, at the Duke Kahanamoku Aquatic Complex. The Rainbow Wahine dropped to 4-11, 2-5 MPSF, while the 49ers improved to 13-5, 5-2 MPSF.

UH got on the scoreboard first, with 5:58 remaining in the first period, on one of three Karin van Hoff goals. But the 49ers answered with goals by Drue Wawrzynski and Angelica Garcia to take a 2-1 lead after the first quarter.

The Rainbow Wahine tied the game at 2 on a Kristy Bagnall goal. But consecutive goals by Ashley Richardson and Cassie Azevedo put the Beach ahead 4-2 with under a minute to go in the half. Van Hoff answered with her second goal of the match with :51 remaining but the 49ers responded with another Wawrzynski goal, giving the 49ers a 5-3 lead.

After a four minute scoreless stretch, Azevedo scored twice before the Rainbow Wahine dented the scoreboard again. Bagnall nailed her second goal with 1:14 remaining in the third period trimming the deficit to three.

Van Hoff recorded her team-leading 19th goal of the season, a skip shot, with 6:27 left to pull the Rainbow Wahine to within 7-5. But after two failed possessions in which UH hit the crossbar, Wawrzynski ended any hopes of a Hawai`i comeback with her third goal.

The Rainbow Wahine and 49ers will next participate in the sixth annual Rainbow Challenge, beginning Friday. The eight-team tournament runs through Sunday and features, UC San Diego, UC Santa Cruz and Cal Baptist, and international teams from Australia, New Zealand, and Canada.

Team 1-2-3-4-Total
Long Beach State 2-3-2-1-8
Hawai`i 1-2-1-1-5

LBSU Scoring: Drue Wawrzynski-3, Cassie Azevedo-3, Angelica Garcia, Ashley Richardson
Hawai`i Scoring: Karin van Hoff-3, Kristy Bagnall-2

Goalie Saves: Bri Hawkins-3 (LBSU), Amber Lumb-3 (Hawai`i)
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