WHITTIER, Calif. — The Brown University women’s water polo team swept past No. 25-ranked Azusa Pacific University, 8-6, and Division III No. 4 Whittier College, 15-9, at Whittier’s Slade Aquatics Center.
On the first day of their eight-day, nine-game West Coast road trip, the Bears used a 4-0 run to open the second half to defeat the nationally ranked Cougars prior to topping the host Poets behind an 8-2 second quarter.
Senior Jessica Heilman (Menlo Park, Calif.) led the Bears with six goals between the two games, including five strikes versus Whittier. Juniors Maigrie McDougal (Sacramento, Calif.) and McKenna Miller (Danville, Calif.) netted five and four goals, respectively, on the day.
Against Azusa Pacific, juniors McDougal and Carmen Rosas (Schaumburg, Ill.) each scored twice, the Bears totaled 20 steals as a team in the first game of the squad’s West Coast trip.
The Bears used a 4-0 run to start the second half, turning a 3-3 tie into a 7-3 lead en route to the win.
McDougal posted five steals and four field blocks alongside her two goals, while Rosas tallied five steals and two ejections drawn to go with her two markers.
Senior Jessica Heilman (Menlo Park, Calif.) notched a goal, three steals, two field blocks, and two ejections drawn. Junior McKenna Miller (Danville, Calif.) posted a goal, three steals and two field blocks. Freshman Carissa Perez (Pico Rivera, Calif.) tacked on a goal and two assists, and sophomore Lexi Atwell (La Jolla, Calif.) added a goal.
Senior goalie Marisol Dakan (Pasadena, Calif.) made four saves and did not allow a goal in the fourth quarter.
The Bears opened the game with a 3-1 lead after the first quarter behind goals from Rosas, Heilman and McDougal. The Cougars netted the second stanza’s only two goals to knot the score at 3-3 at the intermission.
Brown started the second half on a 4-0 run, taking a 7-3 advantage with 4:42 to go in the third frame. Perez and Rosas started the streak before tallies from McDougal and Miller closed the burst. APU answered with three straight goals to pull within 7-6 heading to the fourth quarter.
After close to seven minutes of scoreless play, Atwell netted an insurance goal for the Bears with 1:01 remaining.
In the nightcap against the host Poets of Whittier, Heilman scored five goals with McDougal and Miller both adding hat-tricks.
The Bears outscored the Poets by an 8-2 count in the second quarter to take an 11-4 halftime lead on their way to the win.
Heilman added two assists and three steals to her five goals, while Miller posted five steals and two assists alongside her three goals. McDougal recorded three steals and two assists with her three goals.
Junior Allison Woo (Arcadia, Calif.) scored two goals while freshmen Kaitlyn Cook (Los Gatos, Calif.) and Lily Keck (La Jolla, Calif.) each netted one goal. Perez dished out a team-high four assists, and Atwell made three steals.
In the cage, Dakan made five saves, and sophomore goalkeeper Lauren Burns (Long Grove, Ill.) stopped three shots.
The Bears gained a 3-2 lead at the end of the first quarter as McDougal opened the game’s scoring before Heilman netted the Bears’ other two markers of the stanza.
Brown extended its lead to 5-2 as Heilman scored again and Miller converted a 5-meter penalty shot. After Whittier pulled within 5-3, the Bears closed the half on a 6-1 run. Miller and McDougal each scored twice during the streak and Heilman and Keck each scored once as Brown staked itself to an 11-4 halftime lead.
Cook and Woo both scored in the third quarter as Brown remained ahead 13-7 heading to the fourth frame. Heilman and Woo each found the back of the net in the fourth quarter to close out the victory.
Release courtesy Brown University Athletics Communications
