Gauchos Finish Up Road Swing Against LMU, Occidental

March 10, 2011

• The Schedule
Saturday, March 12, 2011
No. 13 UC Santa Barbara vs. No. 6 Loyola Marymount, 10:30 a.m.
No. 13 UC Santa Barbara vs. Occidental, 12 p.m.
At LMU's Burns Center

• This Week In Water Polo
The No. 13 UC Santa Barbara women's water polo team will play two more road contests this week as it heads to Los Angeles to face No. 6 Loyola Marymount on Saturday before taking-on Occidental in a neutral site pairing. Both games will be played at Loyola Marymount's Burns Center.

• Last Time Out
UCSB played a pair of games at last week's Cal Lutheran Spring Classic and came out on top in both. The Gauchos defeated St. Francis, 14-6, before downing La Verne, 18-11.

• For The Record
The Gauchos enter this weekend with a 12-7 overall mark. UCSB is 3-1 in road games and 6-3 in neutral site contests. UCSB is currently ranked 13th nationally in the Collegiate Water Polo Association Poll.

• Kulakowski Posts Career Best
Senior Kristin Kulakowski was impressive at the Cal Lutheran Spring Classic as she led the Gauchos with eight goals across the two games. She posted a hat trick against St. Francis before tallying a career-high five goals in the win over La Verne. She accounted for a quarter of the Gauchos' goals on the day. Additionally, she earned four ejections across the two games, drawing three in the game against St. Francis. Kulakowski is currently third on the team and 13th in the Big West with 20 goals.

• Last Line of Defense
Sophomore goalkeeper Ruth Milne has started all 19 contests in goal for the Gauchos this season. Milne is currently averaging 11.8 saves per game, which is tops among Big West keepers. Her 7.27 goals against average, meanwhile, ranks fifth in the league. She has had double-digit saves on 11 occasions, including a season-best 16 against Cal on Feb. 26.

• Nelson Notebook
Senior Kathryn Nelson continues to lead the Gauchos in goals with her 33 this season and she is ranked fourth in the Big West Conference. Nelson has scored in all but three contests this year and has had 11 multiple goal games. She scored a season-high four goals against Cal State East Bay on Feb. 13. Additionally, she leads the team in steals (24) and field blocks (6).

• Record Watch
Senior Christie Clark's 26 goals this season have brought her career count to 142, which ranks fourth on the UCSB career-scoring list. She needs 10 more goals to match No. 3 Jennifer D'Anna's career output. Kathryn Nelson (82 goals) and Claire Buchanan (81 goals) rank 17th and 18th, respectively. Nelson needs one goal to tie Suzanne Eskilson (1996-98) for 16th.

• What's Next?
UCSB will return home for the first time since January next weekend to host a trio of non-conference contests. The Gauchos host Bucknell on Saturday, March 19 at 4 p.m. and will welcome Iona and Cal State San Bernardino to Campus Pool the following day for 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. pairings, respectively.