MODESTO, Calif. – Senior Piper Brostrom posted a triple hat trick in a 13-3 win over host Downey, then seniors Abigail Benavidez and Miranda Ferguson tallied scoring totals of four and three goals in a 9-2 victory against Sierra, as St. Francis swept the first day of action at the Western States girls' water polo tournament Friday.

The Troubadours improve to 13-5, having won four straight games. Friday's sweep moves them to the Johansen side of the tournament, where they are grouped with the other first-place teams from round-robin play: El Capitan, South Eugene and Merced.

Brostrom had to carry the lion's share of the offensive load against Downey, as Benavidez and Ferguson were unable to attend due to SATs back at the St. Francis campus. As such, Brostrom shot 9-for-10 with two assists and a steal. Although complete school records do not exist, that total stands as the highest single-game scoring performance by a Troubadour since stats became available at MaxPreps.com. The previous high was the eight-goal output from Gauri Mathrakott at Bella Vista in 2022.

Audrey Ellis netted two second-quarter goals, while Addison Hutchcraft and Emma Dietrich scored in the first and fourth quarters, respectively. Hutchcraft and Dietrich also finished with three assists each. Goalkeeper Sophia Santsche-Chavez tallied 11 saves against the three goals, while supplying anothe two assists. She held the Vikings scoreless in the first half to lead SF to an 8-0 halftime lead.

In contrast to the morning game, St. Francis battled the Timberwolves more closely in the early going. Santsche-Chavez had five saves with one goal allowed in the first quarter, as the two teams locked up in a 1-1 tie. Brostrom and Ellis each found the back of the net in the second to hold a 3-1 lead. Benavidez and Ferguson then exploded for three goals apiece after the break, boosting the Troubies to the final 9-2 victory.

Benavidez also had seven steals to go with her team-leading offense. Ferguson and Hutchcraft each had two assists against Sierra.

St. Francis opens Saturday's Gold bracket play against El Capitan at 9:50 a.m. The third-place game takes place at 12:35 p.m. with the championship following at 1:30 p.m.