After double overtime and a sudden death shootout, the UCSB women’s water polo team defeated Cal Baptist by a score of 8-6. The game started off to the Gauchos’ advantage, but after the second and third quarter of rallying by Cal Baptist, the game was all knotted up at 6-6.

“We wanted to win this game from the very beginning,” freshman utility ZiZi Clark said.

At one point in the game, Santa Barbara was leading by four goals. ” We gave up our head start, but we kept up the intensity and it was a good win,” UCSB Head Coach Danielle Altman said.

Clark is a new addition to the squad and, as seen through her game-winning goal, it is obvious that she is a vital asset to the team.

“ZiZi played an awesome game,” Altman said.

Clark considers the win a result of the team’s effort.

“It was a long game, but we set out what we attained to because we were united as a team,” Clark said.

Her lack of time spent with this new team has not hindered her success.

“College polo is definitely a huge change, but it is a new, exciting experience,” Clark said.

The #20 Lancers dropped their overall season record to 4-5, while the #11 Gauchos raised their overall standings to 6-2.

Directly following the game, the Gauchos hosted a clinic for youth water polo players from the area.

“The girls had a lot of fun, and so did the kids,” Altman said. “The local community is very supportive, and we appreciated how they watch and cheer during our games”.

Santa Barbara agrees that this backing really helped the squad defeat the Lancers.

This weekend the Gauchos will compete in two Mountain Pacific Sports Federation games: Saturday at noon at #1 USC and Sunday at noon at the campus pool against #2 UCLA.