No. 17 Fresno State to face Santa Clara in GCC road contest

FRESNO, Calif. – The No. 17 Fresno State water polo team will go on the road to face Santa Clara in a crucial matchup for Golden Coast Conference Championship Tournament seeding. The stage for the Bulldogs and Broncos is set for Sunday, April 14 at 1:30 p.m. PT in the Sullivan Aquatic Center.

HOW TO FOLLOW
Fans can watch a live stream or follow along with live stats during Sunday's match. Both links are available on the water polo schedule page.

QUICK LOOK AT THE 'DOGS
Fresno State 10-14 (2-3 GCC) is 1-3 on the road this season.

Game Notes:

Fresno State is nationally ranked No. 17.
Fresno State is coming off a 1-1 week, losing a close game to No. 20 San Diego State 9-7 before defeating No. 25 Cal Baptist 14-10.
Fresno State has been ranked within the Top 20 for 10 consecutive weeks.
All of Fresno State's losses this season were against ranked teams.
Fresno State is averaging 10.67 goals per game.
The last time Fresno State and Santa Clara met, the Bulldogs defeated the Broncos 7-6 on March 28, 2018.

Sophomore Emily Nicholson leads the Bulldogs on the attack with 49 goals, averaging 2.04 goals per game. Nicholson has logged 14 multi-goal games this season. Nicholson ranks No. 3 in the GCC in total goals. Senior Mackenzie Richards has spent the majority of the minutes in goal for the Bulldogs this season. Richards has recorded 149 saves and has a .412 save percentage. Richards has logged seven games with 10+ saves. Richards ranks No. 6 in the GCC in total saves. Freshman Daphne Guevremont has been a major contributor for Fresno State this season. Guevremont has scored 32 goals, dished 22 assists, swiped 29 steals and logged 14 field blocks.

NATIONALLY SPEAKING
After starting the 2019 season unranked, the Bulldogs have pushed their way up to No. 17 in the national rankings. The Bulldogs' have reached as high as No. 13 this season. Fresno State has been ranked within the Top 20 for 10 consecutive weeks.

RANKED WINS
Fresno State has knocked off four ranked opponents this season. Fresno State, unranked at the time, upset No. 13 Indiana 12-7 on Jan. 20. A week later, then-No. 17 Fresno State defeated No. 11 Long Beach State 11-9 on Jan. 26. Then-No. 13 Fresno State defeated No. 15 Long Beach and No. 21 Marist in the 2019 Wolverine Invitational, March 2-3. Then-No. 15 Fresno State defeated No. 23 Azusa Pacific 11-9 on March 29. Most recently, Fresno State posted a 14-10 win over GCC foe No. 25 Cal Baptist on April 6.

WELL BALANCED OFFENSE
Fresno State has four players with 30+ goals this season in Emily Nicholson (49), Callie Woodruff (41), Trystyn Vuori (40) and Daphne Guevremont (32).

THREE BULLDOGS EARN GCC PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS
Fresno State leads the Golden Coast Conference with four GCC Player of the Week selections this season.

Emily Nicholson was named the GCC Co-Player of the Week on Jan. 24. Nicholson scored a career-high five goals to lead the Bulldogs to a 12-7 win over No. 13 Indiana.
Trystyn Vuori was named the GCC Player of the Week on Jan. 31. Vuori led the Bulldogs to victory over the No. 11 49ers, scoring a career-high four goals. This was the first time in program history that Fresno State recorded back-to-back GCC Player of the Week Awards.
Callie Woodruff was named the GCC Player of the Week on Feb. 14, after she helped lead the Bulldogs to a 23-4 win over Fresno Pacific. Woodruff tied her career-high with five goals in the game, she also dished one assist and swiped one steal.
Woodruff was named the GCC Player of the Week for the second time this season on March 5, after leading the Bulldogs to a 3-1 week at the Wolverine Invitational. Woodruff scored a team-high 12 goals in three games, averaging three goals per game. She recorded a hat trick in Fresno State's 17-7 victory over St. Francis, and a hat trick in the 14-11 victory over No. 15 Long Beach State. Woodruff tied her season-high with four goals in the 14-6 win over No. 21 Marist College.

2019 GCC PRESEASON POLL
The eight Golden Coast Conference women's water polo head coaches tabbed reigning GCC champion Pacific to win the 2019 regular season title. In just its second season of competition, Fresno State was picked to finish fourth. The poll put Pacific (48 votes, 5 first place votes), Loyola Marymount (43 votes, 2 first place votes) and San Diego State (38 votes) at the top of the conference. Fresno State (29 votes) and California Baptist (27 votes) were slated to finish in the middle. Azusa Pacific (18 votes), Santa Clara (14 votes) and Concordia (7 votes) filled the last three spots to round out the preseason rankings.

OVERVIEW
The Bulldogs return 10 letterwinners, including their top two scorers and All-GCC selections in Emily Nicholson and Callie Woodruff. Fresno State also returned goalkeeper Madelynn Garcia, after emerging as the primary goalie last season. Garcia finished the 2018 season with 132 saves and a team-high 25 steals. The Bulldogs bolstered their roster with eight freshman.

LAST SEASON
Fresno State wrapped up the program's inaugural season with a 7-18 (3-4 GCC) record and finished sixth in the Golden Coast Conference Championships. The first-year program had two All-GCC selections, including the Co-Newcomer of the Year Nicholson, who also received AWPC All-America honors.

2019 GCC CHAMPIONSHIP
Fresno State will host the 2019 Golden Coast Conference Championship April 26-28 in the Aquatics Center. Tickets can be purchased at the gate to the Aquatics Center one hour prior to the start of the first game each day. There will be no advance ticket sales. Single day tickets will be $10 for adults and $5 for children and students. All-session passes will be $30 for adults and $15 for children and students.

SCOUTING THE BRONCOS
Santa Clara (8-13, 1-3 GCC) owns a 3-4 record at home this season.

Team Notes:

Santa Clara has won two of its last three games.
Santa Clara is coming off a 1-1 week, posting a 9-6 win over Cal State East Bay before falling to No. 13 Loyola Marymount 8-4.
Santa Clara yet to chalk up a win over a ranked opponent this season.
Santa Clara is averaging 7.86 goals per game.
Santa Clara has three Broncos with 20+ goals this season.
Santa Clara was picked to finish seventh in the 2019 GCC Coaches' Preseason Poll.
Santa Clara finished the 2018 season with an overall record of 12-19 (1-6 GCC).

Hannah Buck leads the Broncos' offense with a team-high 37 goals. Buck has also dished seven assists and swiped 13 steals this season. She was the only All-GCC selection for Santa Clara in 2018, earning second team honors. Lydia Dadd has spent the majority of minutes in goal for Santa Clara, recording 144 saves and 22 steals. Dadd ranks No. 6 in the GCC in total saves.

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No. 17 Fresno State to face Santa Clara in GCC road contest

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Players Mentioned

Madelynn Garcia

Daphne Guevremont

Emily Nicholson

Mackenzie Richards

Trystyn Vuori

Callie Woodruff

Fresno State Athletics

No. 17 Fresno State to face Santa Clara in GCC road contest

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Next Event

Players Mentioned

Madelynn Garcia

Daphne Guevremont

Emily Nicholson

Mackenzie Richards

Trystyn Vuori

Callie Woodruff

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