SAINT-DENIS, France (AP) — The U.S. women’s water polo team was handed a rare loss at the Paris Olympics on Monday, falling 13-11 to Bea Ortiz and Spain in a rematch of the final at the Tokyo Games.
The U.S. is going for its fourth consecutive gold medal. No team — men or women — has won four straight water polo titles at the Olympics.
It was the program’s second loss at the Olympics since it dropped the 2008 final. It went 5-0-1 in London, 6-0 in Rio de Janeiro and 6-1 in Tokyo.
After its 10-9 loss to Hungary in group play in 2021, the U.S. ripped off four straight wins by a combined score of 63-26. That included a dominant 14-5 victory over Spain in the final.
This time around, it was a much different performance.
Ortiz scored five times on eight shots for Spain, which beat France 15-6 in its Group B opener on Saturday. Maica Garcia Godoy had two goals, and Paula Leiton Arrones also scored while taking advantage of the United States’ youth at the center position.
The U.S. began its Olympic schedule with an impressive 15-6 victory over Greece. It dropped to 18-2 this year ahead of Wednesday’s game against Italy.
Rachel Fattal scored early in the third quarter to trim the U.S. deficit to 7-6. But Ortiz responded with four consecutive goals in a dazzling stretch.
The U.S. closed to 11-10 when Kaleigh Gilchrist scored with 5:35 left. The American team then had a chance to tie the game, but it committed a turnover.
Anni Espar Llaquet scored a big goal for Spain with 4:10 remaining, and goaltender Martina Terre stopped U.S. star Maddie Musselman’s penalty shot to help close it out.
Jordan Raney scored a team-high two goals for the United States. Goaltender Ashleigh Johnson scored in the final seconds, but she made 13 saves on 26 shots in an uneven performance.
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