MORGANTOWN, W. Va. - The women's water polo team survived down the final stretch to become victorious in their exhibition match against the University of California, Merced in the WWPA Championships tournament on Friday, April 25th at the Peak Health Aquatic Center at Mylan Park in Morgantown, West Virginia. 

Score: McKendree University 13, University of California, Merced 10 

Record: Bearcats 19-7, 3-1 WWPA | Bobcats 5-22 

HOW IT HAPPENED

Junior attacker Joey Rebelo (Montreal, Québec) got things off and running with the game's first goal, coming in the middle of the first quarter. UC Merced then responded a little over 30 seconds later via a power play. 

It did not take long for the Bearcats to find their groove in which Rebelo would put the team on her shoulders and help the squad with a four-goal spurt, with two of which coming from the junior as the sophomores in attacker Shanelle Márquez (Madrid, Spain) and utility Hailey Munoz (Murrieta, Calif.) tabbed one a-piece on the other two. 

A couple of unwarranted 5-meter penalties allowed UC Merced to convert on a pair of possessions in the midst of the second period of play, bringing their deficit to two. Yet once again, McKendree erupted with poise, as Rebelo led the charge anew with a 6-0 run. The attacker fired in the first three of such and tallied four in the run overall as Márquez and fellow teammate fifth-year attacker Jasmin Guzman (Cicero, Ill.) snuck in the other two to extend the lead to eight. 

However, the Bobcats would just not go away, where in the tail-end of the third quarter, they began pursuit of a 5-0 run that lasted all the way until 3:30 left in the final period of regulation while cutting the Bearcat lead to three. 

Sophomore attacker Emma Dore (Pomona, Calif.) – who had only four goals prior this season – slung the ball into the net off of a cross-side pass to give McKendree cushion with a four-point advantage in under three minutes remaining. 

UC Merced would take one more crack at knotting things up as the clock kept on ticking, as two of their players found their way inside for a pair and putting the McKendree team on their toes. 

With just 22 seconds remaining in regulation of play, Rebelo found freshman attacker Kaitlyn Goins (East Grand Rapids, Mich.) on the cut to which she forced it in the goal to seal the deal against the Bobcats and hold on to a 13-10 victory. 

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Rebelo went 7-8 shooting in the match as she also recorded an assist and a steal. 

• Márquez dropped in a pair of goals on two attempts along with a drawn exclusion. 

• Dore, Goins, Munoz, and Guzman each contributed a goal in the game, as the latter two each tallied two steals.

• Sydney goalkeeper Sydney Kane (Kankakee, Ill.) came away with six saves on the day in 20:33 minutes of action. 

• UC Merced outshot McKendree 28-27. 

• The Bearcats were +2 in drawn exclusions. 

• McKendree was +2 in total team steals. 

UP NEXT

McKendree will be back in action tomorrow as they face Fresno Pacific University in the semifinals of the WWPA Championships tournament at 10:00 AM CT at the Peak Health Aquatic Center at Mylan Park in Morgantown, West Virginia. 

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