LOS ANGELES – Caltech Women's Water Polo wrapped up its 2024 season with an exhilarating clash with local SCIAC rival Occidental College Saturday morning, rallying from behind to force overtime against the host Tigers.

Occidental opened with a four-goal run before senior Emma Gurcan (Istanbul, Turkey / Lincoln HS; Portland, Ore.) put Caltech on the board with a powerplay goal. The Beavers then rallied in the second and third quarters, scoring five goals to the Tigers' two.

Emma Titus (Hood River, Ore. / Hood River Valley) scored next, about halfway through the second quarter, followed a few minutes later by Gurcan netting her second goal of the game. Charlotte Zhang (San Diego / Torrey Pines) won the sprint to open the third quarter and immediately drew an exclusion, leading to Gurcan's third goal with an assist by Maya Dickson (Atlanta / North Atlanta). Zhang then assisted Gurcan for a game-tying goal at the four-minute mark of the third, making it a 5-5 score.

Oxy briefly retook the lead on a five-meter penalty goal, but then Gurcan drew a penalty against the Tigers and Dickson converted to tie the game again at 6-6.

Dickson scored three more in the fourth quarter to put Caltech up 9-7, and after the Tigers thought their three-goal run would seal the deal with nine seconds left, Gurcan buried one more with two seconds remaining to tie the game at 10, ultimately forcing the game into overtime.

Occidental took a brief lead in the first extra period by way of a penalty shot, but Dickson knotted the score again at the 1:06 mark. A powerplay goal by Oxy early in the second OT period ended up being the difference in the end for a 12-11 final score.

Gurcan ended with five goals and eight drawn exclusions in the contest, setting new program records for career and single-season drawn exclusions. Sophomore Madelyn Gilbert (Clovis, Calif. / Clovis East) tallied three assists to tie the team record for assists in a season. Elizabeth Field (Charlottesville, Va. / Monticello) played in goal for most of the game and recorded six saves in the effort.

"This game was amazing to be a part of, and the team felt really good about raising the level of our program," Head Coach Jon Bonafede said. "This has been the most competitive SCIAC season I've ever been part of at Caltech. To top this off, our team demonstrated exemplary sportsmanship and class; these ladies deserve to be praised and to feel good about ending our season this way."

Follow the team on Instagram at https://instagram.com/caltechwaterpolo