BERKELEY, Calif. – The ninth-ranked UC Santa Barbara women's water polo team rallied back from a 6-3 halftime deficit against No. 5 Cal to tie the Golden Bears at 6-6 in the third period, but ultimately fell 11-10 to the hosts on Saturday afternoon at Spieker Aquatics Complex.

Amanda Legaspi scored five goals in the loss, while Caitlyn Snyder added two goals, two assists, and five field blocks, and goalkeeper Madison Button had seven blocks.

The Gauchos and Golden Bears battled to a 2-2 scoreline in the first period, with Snyder and Legaspi finding the back of the net for UCSB, but Cal took control in the second frame.

Though Snyder put the Gauchos ahead on the power play with 5:50 left until halftime, Cal rattled off four goals in a row to take the 6-3 lead at the break.

Legaspi pulled a goal back for UCSB just 17 seconds into the new half, kicking off a Gaucho rally that saw Leigh Lyter score a fifth goal for the visitors and Legaspi follow up with a sixth to tie the game with 5:12 left in the third.

Cal's Caroline Christi and Reagan Whitney scored back-to-back goals to restore the Golden Bears' lead, but Legaspi scored another to get the Gauchos back within one.

Seconds later, Cecily Turner scored the final goal of the third period to put Cal back up 9-7 heading into the fourth.

Courtney Heydorff responded with the first goal of the final quarter, but Brigit Mulder scored a pair of goals for Cal to extend its lead to 11-8 with under six minutes to play.

Legaspi and Dani Kauahi scored goals 25 seconds apart to cut the deficit to one yet again, but Cal was able to hang on during a frantic final five minutes of play and deal the Gauchos their first defeat of the season.

The Gauchos head to USC next weekend to take on the Trojans in their final non-conference matchup before Big West play begins. More information about the game, including start time, live stream, and live stat links, will be released later in the week on UCSBGauchos.com.