NORTON, Mass. — Player of the Game Makenzie Rickerd (Jr., Rockford, Mich./Rockford), Darragh Martin (Sr., Green Lane, Pa./Upper Perkiomen) and Susie Carrillo (Jr., Fresno, Calif./Clovis North Educational Center) all posted hat-tricks with three goals as Penn State Behrend outmatched host Wheaton College, 13-4, in the opening game of the 2026 Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Division III Championship at the Balfour Natatorium.
The win advances the Lions (5-15, 2-6 CWPA Division III regular season) to a 4:00 p.m. Eastern showdown later today against three-time (2023, 2024, 2025) CWPA Division III Champion/CWPA Division III regular season champion/CWPA Division III Championship No. 1 seed/Division III No. 5-ranked Augustana College. Wheaton slips into the consolation side of the nine-team championship bracket and will return to the water at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, April 11, to take on the fallen from another first round game matching Carthage College-vs.-Austin College.
The Wheaton Lyons (0-18, 0-8 CWPA Division III regualr season) fell behind early and were unable to rally back as the Behrend Lions utilized 3-0 and 5-0 outbursts in the first and second quarters to pull out to an 8-0 margin by halftime.
Martin (7:13) and Rickerd (5:26, 3:35) inflicted the damage in the first quarter prior to Carrillo (4:49, penalty shot), Kaitlyn True (Fr., Denton, Texas/Guyer) (3:22), Rickerd (3:00), Martin (1:20, man-up) and Carrillo (37 seconds) netting second quarter tallies.
The Lyons broke-up the Lions’ shutout try in the opening minutes of the third quarter as Claudia Gagne (Fr., Orlando, Fla./Colonial) dented the twine with 5:38 on the clock to move Wheaton within 8-1. It marked the start of a back-and-forth frame between the two squads as Lauren True (Jr., Denton, Texas/Guyer) responded at 4:54 to rebuild PSB’s lead to eight at 9-1, Ryanna Ritting (So., Perkasie, Pa./Pennride) shaved the margin back to 9-2 (4:10), Carrillo inflated the lead to 10-2 (3:54), Gagne trimmed it to 10-4 (2:48, 1:11) and Hope Edwards (So., Bloomfield, Mich./Seaholm) delivered the final strike of the eight-minute span via a penalty shot with 39 seconds left on the clock to flip the scoreboard to 11-4 in favor of the visitors.
The fourth quarter saw significantly less offensive output as Kaitlyn True (4:01) and Martin (52 seconds) accounted for the lone tallies as the Lions caged the Lyons, 13-4.
For Wheaton, Gagne led the way with three goals to accompany a solo marker by Ritting. Goalkeeper Anduena Kraja (Fr., Chicago, Ill./Lane Tech College Prep) turned aside 10 shots in taking the loss.
Across the tank, Martin (three), Rickerd (three), Carrillo (three), Kaitlyn True (two), Lauren True and Edwards combined for Penn State Behrend’s 13-goal total in support of a three save performance from netminder Monica Villasenor (Jr., San Gabriel, Calif./Pasadena).
| 1st Q | 2nd Q | 3rd Q | 4th Q | – | FINAL | |
| Penn State Behrend (5-15) | 3 | 5 | 3 | 2 | – | 13 |
| Wheaton College (0-18) | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | – | 4 |
| Wheaton Goals: | Claudia Gagne (3); Ryanna Ritting | |||||
| Penn State Behrend Goals: | Darragh Martin (3); Makenzie Rickerd (3); Susie Carrillo (3); Kaitlyn True (2); Lauren True; Hope Edwards | |||||
| Saves: | Wheaton – Anduena Kraja (10) ; PSB – Monica Villasenor (3) | |||||
| Exclusions: | Wheaton – 11 ; PSB – 5 | |||||
| Advantage Opportunities: | Wheaton – 0-for-5 ; PSB – 4-for-11 | |||||
| Sprints: | Wheaton – 3-for-4 (1st, 3rd, 4th) ; PSB – 1-for-4 (2nd) | |||||
| Cards/Misconducts: | YC – Penn State Behrend (Head coach Emily McNauhgton, 4:26 left in 3rd Q) | |||||
| Officials: | Tiffany Ruiz-Urbanski; Mark Veszi | |||||
Wheaton College’s Isobelle Jennings (#9) battles Penn State Behrend’s Karis Barth (#2) for a loose ball
Wheaton College’s Ryanna Ritting (#5) tries to get rid of the ball as Penn State Behrend’s Karis Barth (#2) tries for a steal
Penn State Behrend’s Lauren True (#8) closes in on Wheaton College’s Josephine Basco (#3)
Wheaton College’s Ryanna Ritting (#5) defends Penn State Behrend’s Karis Barth (#2)
