The No. 12 UC Santa Barbara women’s water polo team suffered a heartbreaking defeat at 10th-ranked UC San Diego, falling 7-6 in sudden death overtime on Friday night at Canyonview Aquatic Center.
A Triton goal by Ciara Franke with three seconds left in the seventh period was the game-winner in the contest.
Redshirt sophomore attacker Sarah Owens scored the first goal of the contest for the Gauchos with 5:20 remaining in the first period before Jessee Ransone tied things up for UCSD shortly afterward. Ransone is a Santa Barbara High alum.
Junior attacker Amanda Legaspi put UCSB ahead 2-1 with 2:29 left in the first, but again UCSD found the answer on the powerplay through Sydney Boland.
Both teams mirrored each other in the second period as well, with Gaucho freshman attacker Leigh Lyter and UCSD’s Franke exchanging scores to keep the game tied at 3-3.
Franke scored her second goal of the contest and the hosts’ second powerplay goal of the evening with 3:28 to go until halftime, giving UCSD its first lead of the game.
However, freshman attacker Nina Munson ensured that the game was tied at the half with a late goal with 1:36 left until the break.
When the action returned, UCSD rattled off back-to-back goals less than a minute apart via Ransone and Annika Arroyo, as the Tritons took the first two-goal lead of the game by either team.
Senior attacker Mollie Simmons brought the Gauchos back within one with 2:37 left in the third period, and the next goal didn’t come until the 4:43 mark in the fourth when sophomore utility Courtney Heydorff’s shot found the back of the net to make it a 6-6 game.
Following the frantic final minutes of regulation, the game moved into overtime.
The contest transitioned into a sudden-death seventh period and the teams remained deadlocked until there were just three seconds left in the period and Franke completed her hat trick and ended the match.
The Gauchos are 3-4 overal and 1-1 in the Big West.