LONG BEACH, Calif. – The Cougar water polo team got their feet wet against the 8th-ranked in the country, dropping an 18-4 game against host Long Beach State Saturday morning at the Ken Lindgren Aquatics Center in their opening game at the Beach Invite.

How It Happened: The contest got off to a decent start, with Alexandra Akritidou finding the back of the net on a power play just 90 seconds into the game to tie the score at 1-1.  That would prove to be the highlight of the game for the Cougars, who surrendered six consecutive goals over the remainder of the first quarter.  Kohia Rego scored her first goal for Azusa Pacific to open the scoring in the second quarter, but the Beach would again respond with four in a row before Jessie Nelson beat both the buzzer and the keeper to cut the deficit to 11-3 at halftime.

Long Beach continued displaying their defensive prowess by keeping the Cougars off the scoreboard for the entirety of the third quarter, keeping up the pressure with another five goals in the period to make the score 16-3.  Alyssa Perez got her first of the season early in the fourth quarter to provide a brief respite, but Long Beach State would tack on two more to provide the final margin.

By the Numbers: Azusa Pacific earned 11 power play opportunities in the game, but were only able to score on two of them.  By contrast, Long Beach State converted on five of the six exclusions they drew.  In goal, Daniela Herrero Miralles and Alex Airitam each played half the game, with Airitam recording seven saves in the second half.

Up Next: The Cougars (0-1) will play their second match of the day at 3:30 p.m. when they take on Cal State Northridge.