SANTA CLARA, Calif- The Sonoma State water polo team and their dream of playing in their first ever WWPA Championship game came to an end this Saturday afternoon at the Sullivan Aquatics Center on the campus of Santa Clara, as the Seawolves fell to No. 1 seeded Loyola Marymount, 13-6. The Lions will play in their ninth consecutive WWPA Championship game tomorrow against host Santa Clara. No. 5 Sonoma State will play in their first ever third-place match against No. 2 Cal State Bakersfield at 12:30 p.m.

Sonoma State scored the first two goals of the game, as Laurel Stricklin and Samantha Mullins each netted goals to give Sonoma a 2-0 lead in the first quarter. The Lions would answer with 2:33 remaining when Kimberly Bendetti fired one past goalie Lysa Lombard, making the score 2-1 after one period.

Loyola Marymount opened the flood gates in the second, outscoring Sonoma 7-2 in the quarter to take an 8-4 lead into halftime. Doing the most damage for the Lions was Nicole Hughes who netted three in the quarter, and Diana Romero, who posted two goals of her own.

Loyola Marymount's defense tightened up as well, as the Lions held the Seawolves scoreless in the third quarter. Eliana Arellano collected three saves in the quarter, as LMU all but put the game out of reach with two more goals in the third period.

Sonoma State was paced by Stricklin who posted three goals, and Sarah Watt, who added two of her own in the fourth quarter. Lysa Lombard grabbed six saves behind the net.

Match Statistics

Sonoma State - 2 2 0 2 - 6
Loyola Marymount - 1 7 3 2 - 13

SSU Scoring: Laurel Stricklin (3), Sarah Watt (2), Samantha Mullins (1)

SSU Goalie Saves: Lysa Lombard (6)