Women's Water Polo closed out its Central Coast Classic with a pair of wins to finish the tournament with a 2-2 record. The Cougars opened the day against a resilient Fullerton team that pushed them to Sudden Death, 14-13, however, after the extended game, they were able to finish strong by beating Diablo Valley, 15-3, in the tournament finale. Cuesta was in full attack-mode to start the game against Fullerton and jumped out to a 4-1 lead in the first quarter, before extending that lead to a, seemingly, insurmountable seven-goal, 10-3, advantage at the intermission. The visiting Hornets put a dent in the Cuesta lead by outscoring the Cougars, 3-1, just after the break, but took over the game in the fourth quarter. Fullerton held the Cougars scoreless over the last 11 minutes of regulation, while scoring five consecutive goals to force the game into overtime. Fullerton took its first lead of the game in the first overtime, but Cuesta's All-WSC Center Hannah Kempf scored to tie the game and push it to another period. In the second overtime, Sophomore Sydney Gills, put the Cougars back on top, only to have the Hornets force Sudden Death on a buzzer-beater. Cuesta finally closed out their two-day tournament's final and longest on another goal from Gills for the victory, 14-13. The well fought triumph moved Cuesta's overall record 7-2 on the season.
Cuesta Women's Water Polo returns to action for the third straight weekend, when the team attends the West Valley Tournament in Saratoga next Friday and Saturday.