Feb. 21, 2007

Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader

Briefly
The Loyola Marymount University women's water polo team are off to another solid start, going 5-1 after winning the UC San Diego Triton Invitational for the third straight year a week ago. The Lions, who last played on Feb. 11, enter a busy five-game week with 11 days of rest. They will start the week with No. 16 Michigan at the Burns Recreation and Aquatics Center on Thursday, Feb. 22 before heading to the UC Irvine Invitational over the weekend.

The Lions
The Lions won their third straight UC San Diego Triton Invitational with an 8-6 win over then No. 6 San Diego State in the championship game. In the tournament, the Lions advanced to the title game with an 8-7 sudden death overtime win against then No. 7 UC Irvine while also defeating Maryland 13-6 and No. 17 UC San Diego 6-4 in the opening day. Senior Stacia Peterson paces the Lions with 14 goals on just 19 shots (73.7 percent), while senior Katie Hicks follows with 11 goals and sophomore Nicole Hughes is second with 10.

Five-Game Week
The Lions fast start will see five ranked teams test it this week. In addition to No. 16 Michigan, the Lions will play in the 2007 UC Irvine Invitational. Every team in the 16-team tournament are ranked in the nation's top-20, including the Lions opener against WWPA rival UC Davis on Saturday at 10:15 a.m. at the Corona del Mar High School pool. The Aggies are ranked No. 10 and it will be the first meeting between LMU and UCD since the Aggies upset the Lions in last year's WWPA title game. Also in the Lions pool is No. 3 USC and No. 15 Long Beach State. If the Lions win their first game they will play at 2 p.m. if they do not they will play at 3:15 p.m. The field also includes No. 1 UCLA, No. 19 Santa Clara, No. 8 San Diego State, No. 9 UC Irvine, No. 5 Cal, No. 14 UC San DIego, No. 4 Hawaii, No. 12 UC Santa Barbara, No. 2 Stanford, No. 16 Michigan, No. 6 San Jose State and No. 11 Arizona State.

layer of the Week
Loyola Marymount senior Stacia Peterson was named the Western Water Polo Association Player of the Week for her performance last week, helping the Lions go 5-0 on the week and move four spots in the national rankings, placing at No. 7 in this week's poll. Peterson and the Lions posted wins over No. 15 Hartwick, Maryland, No. 17 UC San Diego, No. 7 UC Irvine and No. 6 San Diego State on the week. She led the team with 13 goals on just 19 shots, good for a shooting percentage of 68.4. She added 10 steals as the Lions won the UC San Diego Triton Invitational for the third straight year. The fifth-year senior from Mundelein, Ill., had to miss all but seven games last year due to a back injury. She was granted a medical redshirt. She tied a career-best with six goals in the win over Hartwick, scoring the Lions' last six goals of the game in the 9-8 win. She added a pair against Maryland, three in the sudden death overtime win over UC Irvine and two more against San Diego State in the title game. Her 14 overall goals this season give her 175 in her career, second most in LMU history. This is the program's 10th anniversary.

Head Coach John Loughran
Entering his 10th season at the helm of the women's water polo program, Loughran has achieved unparalleled success for the Lions. He has led the team to five WWPA championships, six straight 20-win seasons and seven straight winning campaigns. He has earned four WWPA Coach of the Year honors and has coached the last five WWPA Players of the Year and has had 12 Americans, 23 All-WWPA selections and 12 All-NCAA Tournament selections. His career record reflects his success with the women's program with a career mark of 194-82 (.709). Loughran has also led the men's water polo program to a new level of success. Taking over the program in the 1997 season, Loughran led the Lions to its first WWPA Championship in 2001 and then three straight titles in 2003, 2004 and 2005. With the men's program he has compiled a record of 170-135 in 10 seasons. In addition, Loughran has established home "pool" advantage for the water polo programs as the women's team has gone 61-10 (.859) at the Burns Recreation and Aquatics Center.