Late surge carries No. 1 Fullerton past No. 3 Vaqueros, 12-8

Top-ranked Fullerton outscored No. 3 SBCC 4-1 in the last 13 minutes on Saturday en route to a 12-8 women's water polo win at Fullerton.

In an early morning game at the Mt. SAC Classic, the Vaqueros routed Santa Monica 18-6 in a WSC battle. SBCC is 14-2 overall and 3-0 in the WSC with 35 straight conference wins.

Santa Barbara had its four-game win streak snapped by the Hornets (8-1). Both teams entered the contest with one loss to No. 2 Riverside.

"It was a good battle and we learned a lot as a team," said SBCC coach Chuckie Roth. "We will keep getting better every game we play. Hana Wigzell had a standout game and Taylor Brooks was great on offense. Lanie Acevedo had a huge day of growth and improvement, playing very well in the early game against Santa Monica and also against Fullerton."

Brooks and Wigzell scored two goals each in the Fullerton game. The Vaqueros took a 2-0 lead, then fell behind 7-4 in the second quarter. A goal by Wigzell cut the deficit to 7-6 in the third and Brooks found the net at 5:46 to pull the Vaqueros within a goal, 8-7.

Alexandra Lopez led Fullerton with three goals and she scored with 3:49 to go in the third, igniting the 4-1 game-ending run.

Brooks and Acevedo notched four goals apiece in the win over Santa Monica. Brooks had two steals and three drawn ejections while Wigzell contributed two goals, two assists and three steals.

The Vaqueros will play four games in the 21st Rabobank Classic at Cuesta on Oct. 4-5. They'll take on Cuesta in a WSC clash on Friday at 11:10 a.m., then square off with the Philippines National Team at 2:25 p.m.