RIVERSIDE, Calif. – LMU women's water polo improved to 24-2 and 6-0 in the Golden Conference with one game remaining in the regular season after earning a 17-13 win over California Baptist on the road.
 
Yanah Gerber opened the scoring to give the Lions the first lead. CBU quickly responded with the next two goals to take a lead that held for only one possession. The Lions answered with the final three goals of the opening period as Anna Tarantino, Lior Ben David, and Ruth Arino Ruiz all beat the goalkeeper to bring the score to 4-2.
 
Gerber again opened the period with a goal to push the Lions ahead, 5-2, before the Lancers scored the next two to pull within one with 5:15 to play in the half. Tarantino again put an end to the home team's run to increase the lead back to two goals. After CBU converted a penalty shot, Gerber scored on LMU's ensuing possession. The back-and-forth continued as the Lancers converted a powerplay goal and Arino Ruiz scored with 22 seconds in the half.
 
The Lions scored the first four goals of the second half, with the first tow coming from Ben David and the next two coming from Skye Nankervis and Carolina Magano. The Lancers scored their first goal of the half at the 1:36 mark, before Mikayla Lopez made it a 5-1 half with her goal with 1:05 showing on the clock.
 
Sophia DeMattia doubled up the score and put LMU ahead 14-7 within the first minute of the fourth quarter. California Baptist scored the next four goals before Arino Ruiz converted a penalty with 1:53 remaining. The two teams traded off the final four goals of the game, with Noa Sasover and Arino Ruiz closing out the game.
 
Inbar Geva made five first half saves to give the Lions a halftime lead. Madison Davis closed the game with a save and an assist in her 16 minutes in the cage.
 
With the win, the sixth-ranked Lions clinched a share of the GCC regular season title. The Lions will have a chance to win the conference outright on Saturday in final home game against Azusa Pacific. Saturday's game will also feature a special recognition for LMU's senior class of Madison Davis, Inbar Geva, and Lior Ben David.
 
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