UCSB’s Samantha Murphy
For the second time in three years, the Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches named Samantha Murphy Honorable Mention All-America following her outstanding junior season.
Murphy led UCSB with 42 points in 2015, as she netted 34 goals and recorded eight assists. One of her biggest matches of the year came during the Gauchos’ annual Winter Invitational when she scored four goals in a 20-2 rout over Claremont-Mudd-Scripps. The utility later reached her season-high against Concordia when she found the back of the net five times.
The junior also stepped up in conference play, as she scored a hat trick to lift the Gauchos to a pivotal 8-7 victory over Long Beach State, which secured UCSB a higher seed in the Big West Tournament.
Murphy first earned All-America honors as a freshman when she tallied the Gauchos’ second-highest single season goal total with 78. That year, she also ranked second on the team with 43 assists for a total of 121 points.
After three seasons, Murphy has already proven herself to be one of UCSB’s most prolific offensive players ever, as she currently ranks fifth in Gaucho lore with 129 goals.
Since UCSB’s women’s water polo team became a Div. I program in 1996, Murphy becomes the fifth Gaucho to earn multiple All-America accolades, joining Lynn Nisbet (2), Keri Santos (2), Kelley Tiffany (2), and Kara Watkins (2).
