Long Beach State Opens Season With Two Dominating Wins
LONG BEACH, Calif. – The Ken Lindgren Aquatics Center hosted a busy day of water polo as Long Beach State Women's Water Polo team opened their 2025 campaign. The Beach defeated Azusa Pacific and Concordia as part of ten matches hosted at the Ken Lindgren Aquatics Center. Jermonie Billingsly, Martina Cardona and Elisa Portillo all scored seven goals each on Saturday.
In the first game of the day, the Beach defeated Azusa Pacific by 18-4. Long Beach State started the first quarter with intensity and open a six-goal lead, ending the quarter up 7-1. Martina Cardona and Elisa Portillo both added two goals in the quarter with sophomore Chiara Amoroso scoring her first of the season. Freshmen Daniela Quinzada Gonzalez and Jermonie Billigsly scored their first goals as Beach players.
The Cougars started the second quarter scoring a quick goal on an extra man situation to cut the Beach lead. Cardona and Portillo got on the board right after completing hat tricks as Quinzada Gonzalez added her second of the day. Freshman Zelma Koka added one on a penalty shot to take the Beach up 11-2 at halftime.
Led by hat trick quarter for Billingsly, the Beach extended the lead to head into the last quarter up 16-3. Sophomore Charlotte Echlin led the Beach on defense with nine saves before senior Chelsea Oliver played the last quarter. With six saves in the quarter, Oliver passed 500 career saves in her career. Sophomore Emma Vertiz added the last goal of the game as the Beach won their first game of the season edging the Cougars 18-4.
At the second game of the day, the Beach started trailing Concordia by two. A four-goal run by the Beach would secure the lead, but the Golden Eagles cut the lead to one at the buzzer of the first quarter. Jamie Oberman and Rita Gurri Capel both scored on an individual plays and Chiara Amoroso and Zelma Koka netted penalty shots to help the Beach start ahead, 4-3.
Junior Elisa Portillo got things started for the Beach on the second quarter after scoring on the penalty shot. The Golden Eagles answered back but Long Beach State scored five straight goals to extend the lead to six, 10-6. Cardona netted two while Billingsly, Petanuade, Ellie Goren, Brooklyn Plomp all scored one in the quarter. Cardona's late goal took the Beach to the halftime up 11-5.
The second half started with four straight goals by the Beach. Graduate student Amanda Price scored her first goal of the season while Portillo, Oberman and Gurri Capel all added one, putting the Beach up 15-5. Concordia answered back but another four-goal run by the Beach closed the quarter 19-6. Portillo, Koka, Gurri Capel and Billingsly all added another in the quarter.
Redshirt freshman Olivia Dam scored her first collegiate goal for the Beach to open the last quarter. The Golden Eagles answered with back-to-back goals but the Beach added three more with Oberman finishing her hat-trick and Cardona and Billingsly scoring their seventh goal of the day. In the defensive end, Chelsea Oliver and Charly Edler split time in the cage combining 12 saves.
The Beach is back in action next week in Northern California where they will play four top 10 teams at the Cal Cup.
