Box Score 1 LA JOLLA, Calif. -- Advancing in the championship bracket at the Triton Invite, the No. 10 UC Davis women's water polo team got an early look at its 2022 Big West Conference season on day two, splitting a pair of contests on the final day in La Jolla, Calif.

The Aggies (7-5 overall) opened the morning with a comeback win over No. 12 UC San Diego by the score of 9-7, before falling to No. 7 UC Irvine, 9-6, in the tournament's fifth-place game.

Junior Noelle Wijnbelt and Hailey Williams each put three past the goalie into the back of the cage on the day, part of a group of nine Aggie players to score goals on the day. Ashley Salem added three assists, while goalkeeper Sophia Noble finished with a combined 14 saves -- nine of those coming in the win over UC San Diego.

UC Davis returns to action next week in the Central Valley, taking on San Jose State and Indiana on Saturday (Feb. 19) as part of the Fresno State Invitational.

#10 UC DAVIS 9, #12 UC SAN DIEGO 7
Noelle Wijnbelt finished with a pair of goals -- including the eventual game-winner on a 5-meter attempt with 2:43 remaining in the game -- and Hailey Williams added a pair of strikes of her own, helping the Aggies advance in the championship bracket with a 9-7 win over Big West Conference rival UC San Diego in the opening match of the day.

UC Davis rallied from down 4-1 after the first quarter, trailed by as many as five in the match, and erased a 6-3 halftime deficit with a huge second half, outscoring the host Tritons by a 6-1 count over the final 16 minutes en route to the win.

Tess Fundter scored at the 4:26 mark of the second quarter to spark a run of four straight goals that ran into the third period as Williams (twice) and Kelly Hungerford also found the back of the cage to make it a one-goal contest at 6-5 with just under two minutes gone in the third quarter.

Kendall Thomas broke the run with a goal for UCSD, but Alyssa Lengtat answered quickly and UC Davis finished the match on another 4-0 run to take control. Allyson Clague's goal at the 4:53 mark of the fourth tied the match, setting the stage for Wijnbelt's penalty winner for the 8-7 lead. Emily Aikema then put the bow on the win with a goal with just 68 seconds remaining.

Julia Hartmann finished with a pair of assists , four drawn exclusions, and six steals, while goalkeeper Sophia Noble corralled nine saves in the win.

#7 UC IRVINE 9, #10 UC DAVIS 6
Grace Pelkey finished with a pair of goals and the Aggies mounted a fourth-quarter comeback against their Big West Conference rivals, but UC Davis came up just short in the Triton Invite fifth-place game, falling to the Anteaters, 9-6.

Noelle Wijnbelt, Hailey Williams, Alyssa Lengtat, and Sam Yoo, each found the back of the cage for the Aggies, who outscored the Anteaters, 3-1, in the final period, but the hole was already too deep as UC Irvine led 8-3 after three quarters and held on from there.

Back-to-back goals by Wijnbelt and Williams in the first quarter tied the match at two apiece, but an Anteater score with six seconds remaining in the quarter gave the Anteaters a 3-2 lead and sparked a run that saw UCI score six of the next seven goals en route to the win.

Ashley Salem added three assists and Kelly Hungerford swiped three steals, while Julia Hartmann drew five kick-outs. 
 

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