This past Saturday was a crucial game for the San Diego State water polo team, as it traveled north to Long Beach to take on No. 15 Long Beach State.

The first sprint began at noon, and from then on it was a close game. The first quarter ended with an evenly matched score of 2-2, and at halftime SDSU managed to get a two-point lead of 6-4.

The second half consisted of both teams scoring back and forth.

Despite the fact the Aztecs were down by two points in the fourth quarter, freshman driver Anique Hermann came through and scored two goals to tie the game at 11.

While it was clear both teams were determined to take the win, senior two-meter defender Leanne Ford scored the winning goal on a power play with 1:10 remaining in the game.

In an incredibly close match, SDSU managed to pull out an incredible win, 13-12, which head coach Carin Crawford called “A big character-building win.”

Senior utility Meaghan Poland stood out with five total goals, while Hermann ended the game with three. Freshman utility Taelor Moreno and junior utility Amber Pezzolla also contributed on offense with two goals each.

According to Crawford, LBSU’s noisy fans made it difficult for the team to get into their element.

“Long Beach had a home crowd that was very rowdy and into the game,” she said. “It was hard for us to get into our groove with that going on.”

Although Crawford was very pleased with a win against a highly ranked team, there were a few defensive flaws that could have been avoided.

“We gave up and traded a lot of goals; that kept slowing us down a little bit,” Crawford said. “That could have been better in terms of defense.”

The Aztecs will play against Hartwick at 3 p.m. this Thursday at the Aztec Aquaplex.