The SBCC women’s water polo claimed its second California Community College Athletic Association State Championship in five years, defeating Orange Coast 10-7 on Saturday.
It’s the second state championship in program history as well as the second for head coach Chuckie Roth, who led the Vaqueros to a 31-6 record this season.
The Vaqueros didn’t trail at any point against Orange Coast (28-5), jumping out to a 3-0 lead with goals by Jenna Olson, Claire Daland and Gabrielle Muehring.
The Pirates fought back to make it a 4-4 game midway through the second, but SBCC closed the half with a 3-0 run on goals from Olson, Emily Lopez and Muehring.
OCC wasn’t able to close the gap as goalie Ava Donleavy racked up 11 saves to hold the Pirates to seven goals, their second-lowest scoring total of the season.
Along with recording team-highs of three goals and three assists, Olson was a menace on the defensive end, tallying four steals. Muehring finished with two goals and two assists of her own and Bella Straley scored twice as well. Eden Tal had one goal and drew five exclusions.