ERIE, Pa. – The Macalester College water polo team closed out the regular season with victories over host Penn State Behrend and Connecticut College on the final day of the CWPA Round Robin 2 on Sunday. The Scots went 4-0 this weekend in Erie to clinch the No. 2 seed for the CWPA Division III Championships and improve to 12-4 overall and 7-1 in the conference.

In the match against Penn State Behrend, Macalester opened with a goal in the first quarter and four more in the second to take a 5-1 lead at halftime. Sophomore Jess Palmer-Sammons (Half Moon Bay, Calif./Half Moon Bay) scored the goal in the opening quarter and found the net twice in the second quarter, as did sophomore Lorelei Bell (Encinitas, Calif./San Dieguito Academy). In the third quarter, Palmer-Sammons and first year Pooja Bucklin (Palo Alto, Calif./Henry M. Gunn) scored goals to match two goals by the Lions to make the score 7-3 Scots heading into the final period. After Bucklin opened the fourth quarter with a goal, PSU Behrend answered to make the score 8-4 Macalester. That's as close as the Lions would get, as Bucklin and Palmer-Sammons each scored three goals in the final quarter to give the Scots a 13-7 victory. Senior goalkeeper Laurel O'Hare (Evanston, Ill./Evanston Township) made eight saves to preserve the win.

Against Connecticut College in a rematch of last year's CWPA Championships third place game, won by the Scots, Macalester continued its domination of the opposition this weekend. The Scots allowed just one goal in each quarter, with sophomore goalkeeper Jayden Kratt (Palo Alto, Calif./Henry M. Gunn) registering 18 saves in the match. Junior Olivia Dimka (Denton, Texas/John H. Guyer) led the offense with four goals, with Palmer-Sammons and sophomore Kendall Strauss (Round Rock, Texas/Round Rock) contributing three goals apiece. Sophomore Alana Nadolski (Kentwood, Mich./East Kentwood) had two goals in the win, while Bell, Bucklin and senior Gabriela Weiner (Chicago, Ill./Whitney M. Young Magnet) also found the net.

Macalester now turns its attention to the CWPA Division III Championships, which will be held April 19-21 at Connecticut College in New London, Conn. The two finalists at the CWPA Championships will advance to the Division III national championship May 6-7.

MAC – 1 4 2 6 - 13
PSUB – 0 1 2 4 - 7
Macalester goals: Palmer-Sammons 7, Bucklin 4, Bell 2  

MAC – 2 4 5 4 - 15
CC – 1 1 1 1 - 4
Macalester goals: Dimka 4, Strauss 3, Palmer-Sammons 3, Nadolski 2, Bell, Bucklin, Weiner