After cruising through the first five opponents of the season, Women's Water Polo scheduled themselves the toughest day possible to kick-off their Central Coast Classic.  The Cougars opened the tournament against reigning CCCAA State Champion Santa Barbara and the 2024 CCCAA Runner-up Riverside.  The Aqua-Cats played the title-toting Vaqueros to a 4-4 tie at the intermission, but Santa Barbara began to pull away in the second half.  They doubled the Cougars up in each of the last two quarters: 6-3 in the third and 2-1 in the fourth to claim the victory, 12-8.  The defending champions cut Cuesta's winning streak short at just five games, while boosting their own streak to 10 games.  Returning all-WSC Driver Maddie Corrigan and Freshman Amelia Braun both recorded a "hat trick" against the Vaqueros to lead the Cougars' offense.  In the nightcap, Riverside took heed of the battle Cuesta offered to Santa Barbara and came out of the gate firing.  The visiting Tigers jumped out to a 6-2 lead in the first quarter and added a 5-2 hammering in the second quarter to take control of the "catfight", 11-4.  Cuesta scored three more times after the intermission and played even with the Bengals the rest of the way but could not make a dent in the final margin, 14-7.  All-WSC Defender Hannah Kempf and Freshman Driver Adelyne Merritt both scored two goals to pace the Cougars' offense against the Tigers.  Cuesta Women's Water Polo is now 5-2 on the season.

The Central Coast Classic continues tomorrow with another day full of action.  The games begin at 7 AM, however Cuesta will not hit the water until 11:40, when they face Fullerton. They will also close out the tournament with the final game of the weekend against Diablo Valley at 4:20 PM.