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Box Score 2 Erie, Pa. - Mercyhurst women's water polo opened up the Curtis Robinette Memorial Tournament on Saturday with two games on the docket. The Lakers ended up seeing Long Island University in their first matchup, falling 20-8, before coming back to wrap up the day with a win over Penn State Behrend in an 18-3 victory.
How it Happened
Mercyhurst opened their day with LIU at 12:30 p.m. with the Sharks getting the better of the matchup, 20-8 with LIU getting off to a strong start and taking a 6-2 lead into the second period. The Laker's Sakura Gavin did all she could to help her team keep pace with her scoring two goals in the period, but it was not enough to spark offense from the rest of the team as they went into the second down four.
The second period was a more tightly contested one as Mercyhurst ended up making the right adjustments. Krista Domaracki and Bri Allstun got in on the scoring action for the Lakers, combining for a trio of scores in the period with Allstun recording two of those. LIU started off the period strong with the opening two goals of the frame before Mercyhurst got on the board, making it a 10-5 game going into the halftime.
The Lakers ended up having another solid offensive showing in the third with three goals to their ledger. It was once again Gavin and Allstun getting the job done for Mercyhurst with Allstun scoring twice while Gavin found the back of the net for the third time on the day. The three goals in the third were the only ones of the second half as the Shark's defensive effort picked up in the fourth to help them to the 12-goal win.
Mercyhurst was able to shake off the loss against LIU in a big way in their second competition of the day. The team ended up playing in the finale of day two against Penn State Behrend, grabbing a 15-goal win. The Lakers started off strong with nine goals in the opening frame with the Lions being held scoreless over the course of the first eight minutes.
The second half was more of the same as Mercyhurst has taken full control at that point. While PSB did manage to score twice in the second, it proved to be a moot point. The offense for the Lakers continued to be able to get whatever they wanted, scoring five times in the stanza to help them take a 14-2 lead into the halftime break.
From there, Mercyhurst remained in front with PSB able to do very little to try and claw back. The Lakers commanded the ball for much of the final 16 minutes of play as they looked to drain the clock and stave off any sort of comeback from their counterpart. It ended up being a strategy that worked with Mercyhurst able to claim the win in the end by a final of 18-3.
Highlights
Bri Allstun led the way on offense for the Lakers, scoring eight goals in the pair of games with four coming in each contest. She was followed by Sakura Gavin who finished with four while Grace Brzyski and Krista Domaracki rounded out the top three with a trio of scores apiece.
Next Game
The Lakers finish out their time in the Curtis Robinette Memorial Tournament tomorrow with two games on their schedule. The team will see Chapman up first with the action set to begin at 9:30 a.m. From there, Mercyhurst rounds out the tournament with crosstown rivals, Gannon, in a 2:00 p.m. matchup inside the Hagety Family Event Center.
