The Pasadena City College women's water polo team did all it could but settled for eighth place at the South Coast Conference Championship Tournament Nov. 7 and 9 at Mt. San Antonio College.
PCC's 2024 season ends with only the All-South Coast Conference Team selections to be announced later this month.
After the Lancers opened with a loss to eventual SCC champion Long Beach CC, they battled East Los Angeles, going to overtime before losing a 10-6 game. Then in the seventh place final v. Rio Hondo, PCC led late at 9-6 but Rio Hondo rallied to win 15-11.
Against Rio Hondo, Luna Encinas broke a 6-6 tie with a goal, then Marissa Granados scored with a second left in the second quarter. Ivy Samuel netted a shot early in the third quarter for a 3-goal, Lancers lead. Rio Hondo responded with three straight scores to tie it. Granados momentarily regained the PCC lead at 10-9 but Emily Narvaez sixth of her game-high seven goals tied it with two seconds left in the period.
While Emily Padilla cut it to 12-11 on a power play score with 4:48 left, the Roadrunners pulled away with the final three goals of the match.
Encinas and Samuel each scored the hat trick while Padilla had four assists and two steals. Daisy Reynoso contributed two goals.
In the ELAC game, PCC trailed 5-3 but Encinas tallied two goals in the last 2-and-a-half minutes of the fourth quarter to send the game to OT at 5-5. In first of two extra-time periods, Granados knotted at 6-6, but the Huskies roared back with two goals, then added two more in the final OT period to send PCC to defeat.
Encinas finished with three goals, Samuel had two and five steals, and Granados notched a goal, two assists, six steals and a field block. Goalie Rae Jiao made seven saves.
Samuel, a sophomore, led the Lancers in goals with 27, Granados, a freshman, paced the squad in assists with 18 (17 goals) and steals with 32. Jiao totaled 50 saves.
