The #9 UCSB women’s water polo team couldn’t hold off #6 Loyola Marymount on Saturday at Campus Pool, falling 8-2 after trailing by only a goal entering halftime.

The Lions dominated the Gauchos in the third quarter , scoring four goals to cruise to their 13th victory in a row. LMU freshman utility Katie Hicks dominated UCSB after halftime, scoring a trio of goals during a three-minute span in the third quarter that pushed the Lions to a 6-1 lead heading into the final quarter.

LMU never trailed in the match, as Hicks opened the scoring in the first quarter at 5:33. Junior utility Teresa Guidi put the Lions up 2-0 with under five minutes to play in the first half. Gaucho leading scorer and senior 2-meter Teresa Gorbett finally got UCSB on the board a minute later on a long-range skip shot. The game remained close at 2-1 heading into the second half.

The Lions quickly went up 3-1 when Guidi scored her second goal of the game on a tip-in. Then the floodgates opened for the Lions. LMU tallied the next four goals before UCSB sophomore utility Katy Kunkel scored with 3:18 remaining in the game. Freshman utility Stacia Peterson scored the final goal of the game for the Lions to finish off Santa Barbara.

LMU freshman goalie Rachel Riddell held Santa Barbara in check with 10 saves, four coming during the Lions’ big third quarter. Junior goalie Erin Enriquez finished with six saves for UCSB. On a bright note for the Gauchos, Kunkel has now scored a goal in eight straight games.

Santa Barbara plays its final home match of the 2003 season Friday against Long Beach State at 4 p.m at Campus Pool.