LONG BEACH, Calif.— Entering the Big West Championship as the top overall seed, the No. 6 University of Hawai'i women's water polo team dominated eighth-seeded UC Santa Barbara 18-6 in a quarterfinal match on Friday morning at the Ken Lindgren Aquatics Center in Long Beach, California.
The Rainbow Wahine (14-5) stormed out to a 5-0 lead over the first 5:01 of the match to take control and extended their Big West winning streak to 27 consecutive matches. UH, the two-time defending Big West champion, improved to 8-0 in the tournament's opening round and advanced to the semifinals with the rout of the Gauchos (1-19).
UH will next face fourth-seeded UC Irvine (13-13) on Saturday at 11:00 a.m. Hawaii Time (2:00 p.m. Pacific Time) with the game broadcast on ESPN+.
Agatha Weston reached the five-goal mark for the second time in her career and tallied three assists to finish with a game-high eight points while posting three steals on the defensive end of the pool. Ariadna Temprano Xambó served as another primary offensive facilitator, recording seven points with three goals and four assists.
Ema Vernoux netted a hat trick and added an assist, while
Gabrielle Doyle finished with two goals and a team-high four steals.
Daisy Logtens started in the cage and earned the win, making three saves over 24 minutes of play.
Nalani Yim took over for the fourth quarter and shutout the Gauchos, stopping four shots to tie her season and career highs.
The Rainbow Wahine offense was efficient throughout the match, converting on 4-of-5 powerplay opportunities (.800) and finishing with a .563 overall shooting percentage. The UH defense limited the Gauchos to a .214 shooting percentage and just 1-of-6 (.167) on their player advantages.
Weston set the tone by swiping steals on UC Santa Barbara's first two possessions, allowing Temprano Xambó to open the scoring 71 seconds into the contest. Weston then buried back-to-back 5-meter penalty shots and added her third goal at the 4:59 mark, securing her team-leading seventh hat trick of the season.
After building a 5-1 lead in the first period behind Weston's hat trick and goals from Temprano Xambó and
Camille Radosavljevic, the Wahine responded to an early second-quarter UC Santa Barbara goal with powerplay strikes from
Alia Burlock and Vernoux. Radosavljevic then assisted on goals by Temprano Xambó and Vernoux to push the lead to 9-2, before a late Gaucho powerplay goal made it 9-3 at the half.
Weston opened the third quarter with her fourth goal, and
Asimina Klapsianou became the sixth Hawai'i player to find the back of the net. Temprano Xambó and Vernoux both completed their hat tricks to make it 13-5. Doyle answered a late UC Santa Barbara goal, giving the Rainbow Wahine a commanding 14-6 lead heading into the final eight minutes.
Weston buried her fifth goal at the 6:06 mark of the fourth quarter, while
Raha Peiravani, Doyle, and
Tea Brandon closed out the scoring. Yim and the UH defense blanked the Gauchos in the final frame to close out the win.
UC Irvine advanced with a 22-14 win over UC San Diego in Friday's second quarterfinal match to set up the fourth meeting of the season between the 'Bows and Anteaters. UH won the first three matchups, including a 10-9 win over the Anteaters on Feb. 27 in Irvine to open their Big West schedule.
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