By Andrew Hartley (andrewhart1ey) – Spear Reporter
SJSU women’s water polo(5-9) won their first game of the Santa Clara Tournament Saturday with an offensive showcase beating Marist College (8-5) 13-7.
This was the first time this season where the Spartans won their first game of a tournament.
Looking to build off of their success of the previous tournament, they started by playing Marist at 9 a.m. but were more than awake for this one.
Especially senior Lior Ben David, who scored five goals in this one. Ben David also had a six goal game earlier this season proving her to be an elite scoring threat in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation.
The Spartans put up 25 shots, had seven different players score and only allowed three goals through three quarters.
SJSU led 4-2 at halftime but that’s when they really woke up. A five goal third quarter put away the Red Foxes’ chances of winning.
This wouldn’t stop them from trying as grad student Viktoria Orlova scored four goals on her own in the fourth to try and mount a comeback. But that would only make the score not look like a mercy ending at 13-7, giving the Spartans their third consecutive win.
They won by converting more than 52% of the shots they took in an offensive surge. This was the third consecutive game the Spartans have scored double-digit goals reminiscent of their success from the first tournament of the season.
SJSU women’s water polo looks to continue their success Sunday with matchups against CSU Monterey Bay at 12 p.m. and Brown at 3:30 p.m. at Sullivan Aquatic Center.
