ORANGE, Calif. – Villanova Women's Water Polo started off the 2025 Convergence Tournament hosted by Chapman University with a win, defeating Concordia University, Irvine, 9-8 in a back-and-forth thriller.
Layla Canales started it off for VU early by netting a 5M penalty shot, but the Golden Eagles responded quickly, finding the back of the net twice.
Tiffany Maguire erased the one-goal deficit by scoring three consecutive times to end the first quarter.
Isabel Foley assisted on two of the three Maguire goals, her first two of her three on the day.
After taking the lead in the first frame, the Wildcats never relinquished the lead despite some rallies by Concordia.
Riley Hull and
Emily McKenzie both scored as the clock wound down in the second quarter to lead the 'Cats into halftime ahead 6-4.
Both teams traded goals within one-minute intervals as the Wildcats held their lead throughout the third quarter.
Layla Canales cashed in her third score of the game, and
Anna Painter followed up, scoring off an assist from
Adrienne Grimes to close out the stanza with the Wildcats ahead 8-6.
After the Golden Eagles trimmed the Wildcat lead, Hull drew an exclusion, putting Canales on the 5M stripe, where she found the back of the net to give the Wildcats an insurance goal.
Concordia's Anna Tyukacz added a 5M on her own to keep the game close, but with 11 seconds left, Hull stole the ball, and
Michael Gordon called timeout. Effectively icing the game for the Wildcats.
Gracin Kerry saved nine shots and recorded two steals. She is on track to break her career high for saves in a season if she saves three shots against the Titans later this evening.
Sofia Smith scored three times for the Golden Eagles while Jaden Soto tallied 14 saves and five steals in net for the opposition.
UP NEXT
The 'Cats will face off against California State University Fullerton at 6:15 P.M. (3:15 PST) this evening. All times are subject to change due to the tournament format and facility availability.
WATCH
The match against CSUF will be streamed through FloCollege. Links can be found within the 2025 Women's Water Polo schedule.
SOCIAL
For all the latest updates surrounding the program, follow Villanova Water Polo on Instagram @novawaterpolo and X (formerly Twitter) @nova_waterpolo.
