SHERMAN, Texas — The Division III No. 5-ranked Augustana College Vikings split a pair of games in Texas to begin Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Division III action by defeating the Penn State Behrend Lions, 10-3, before falling to the Division III No. 6 Macalester College Scots, 7-5, at Austin College’s Hannah Natatorium.
In game one vs. Penn State Behrend, the Vikings jumped out to a 4-0 lead after eight minutes of action. Augie saw goals from four different players, including the first of the game by Alayna Ickert a minute in. Ocean Akau, Abigail Gatlin and Sophie Arceneaux accounted for the final three of the frame to give the Vikings a four-point cushion entering the second quarter.
Olivia Parry collected the first score of the second quarter to push the lead out to five for Augie, but the Lions answered with consecutive goals to shrink the gap to three and bring the score to 5-2 entering halftime.
In the third quarter, Akau snatched the first goal of the second half for Augie to stop the mini run from Penn State Behrend. The two teams played to a scoreless battle for the next four minutes until Ickert collected her second goal of the game with less than a minute to go. The Vikings outscored the Lions by a 3-1 count in the final frame to win by a score of 10-3.
Ickert and Akau led the way with two goals apiece, while goalkeeper Susan Palmentera-Reid saved 18 shots.
In game two against Macalester, Augie jumped out to a 2-0 lead after eight minutes following goals by Ickert and Mary King. Macalester bounced back with a 4-0 advantage in the second quarter to double-up the Vikings entering the halftime break. The two teams played to a three-all draw through the final two quarters to keep the Scots in the lead 7-5 at the final buzzer.
With the results, Augustana sits at 8-5 on the year and 1-1 in CWPA Division III play.
Release courtesy Augustana College Athletics Communications
