ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Macalester College water polo team opened up their season with a pair of wins against Grove City College 21-7, and Carthage College 8-6, on day one of the Macalester Invitational Tournament at the Riley Pool. The Scots are now 2-0 to kick off their season.
 
Despite conceding the first goal of the contest to Grove City, the Scots wouldn't let that phase them. Macalester was able to get on the board courtesy of a goal from sophomore Anna Gaisser (Seattle, Wash./Ingraham) and after a back-and-forth period, the Scots entered the second period with a slight 4-3 advantage. The rest of the match would be all Macalester, as in the second, the Scots kept the Wolverines from finding the back of the net once. Alongside some strong defense, the goals started to pour in in the second for Macalester. They were able to net seven with Gaisser and senior Jess Palmer-Sammons (Half Moon Bay, Calif./Half Moon Bay) scoring three each and first-year Alice Lemmon (Evanston, Ill./ Evanston Township) got in on the action with two to give the Scots an 11-3 advantage heading into the half. It was more of the same for Macalester in the second half, as they continued to flex their muscles offensively, scoring ten more goals to secure a commanding 21-7 victory. It was a complete team effort for the Scots, with Gaisser scoring five, Palmer-Sammons and Lemmon each with three. Six other Scots were able to find the back of the net and contribute, while senior goalkeeper Jayden Kratt (Palo Alto, Calif./ Henry M. Gunn) notched three saves to help secure the win.
 
In the second contest of the day for the Scots, they started in familiar territory after giving up the first goal of the game. Shortly after, Mac would find their footing and score four unanswered goals, with three of them coming from first-year Reese Winegar (Hoffman Estates, Ill. William Fremd), to give them a 4-1 advantage after the first period. In a defensive second period, the Scots were able to find another goal courtesy of Palmer-Sammons. Macalester also conceded a goal of their own and headed into the break with a 5-2 lead. Carthage continued to fight back in the third period and put pressure on the Scots by staying within striking distance, who entered the final period with a 7-5 cushion. The Firebirds would eventually be able to bring it to within one goal when Lemmon iced the game and found the back of the net giving Macalester an 8-6 advantage that they would carry until the final buzzer. Wingear led the Scots with three goals, while four other Scots got in on the action offensively. Kratt logged 9 saves for Macalester en route to the victory in game two.
 
The Scots will resume play tomorrow, Sunday Feb.15 to wrap up the Macalester Invitational Tournament, where they will face off against Virginia Military Institute and Augustana College. Start times are set for 12:00 PM and 3:30 PM at the Riley Pool.
 
 
 
MAC – 4 7 5 5 - 21
GSS – 3 0 2 2 - 7
Macalester goals: Gaisser 5, Palmer-Sammons 3, A. Lemmon 3, Martin 3, Winegar 2, Reynolds 2, Mak Kratz, Bell, M. Lemmon
MAC – 4 1 2 1 - 8
CC –  1 1 3 1 - 6
Macalester goals: Winegar 3, Strauss, A. Lemmon, Palmer-Sammons, Fasi, Bell