O'FALLON, Ill. -- The Augustana Vikings women's water polo team was defeated in their first-ever game in school history on Saturday, falling to the McKendree Bearcats on the road by a score of 20-9.

It was a slow start for the Vikings as they attempted to play catch-up after a quarter of play, failing to push one into the net as they faced a 5-0 deficit after eight minutes. The margin grew to 6-0 before Maggie Caliendo buried a goal to move Augustana back to within five at 6-1. The Bearcats grew their advantage up to 10-1 later in the quarter, but Ocean Akau tallied the half's final score to make it a 10-2 score at the break.

Augie secured three goals in the third quarter, two from Alyssa Fricker and one from Victoria Guest, but still saw a deficit in the frame as their opponent pushed through four. The Bearcats led 14-5 after three quarters of action. Five straight scores from McKendree cushioned their lead early on in the fourth as the differential grew to 14 points in their favor. Fricker and Guest combined for three more goals to close out the game, paired with one from Annie Opal Dickson to chip away at the final margin.

Fricker ended the contest with a team-high four goals on four shots to lead the Vikings. She also added two assists.

Augustana drops to 0-1 to start the season and will be back in action beginning Saturday, February 19 when they head to St. Paul, Minn. for the Macalester Invite. The Vikings will face No. 9 Occidental and No. 7 La Verne on Saturday with start time scheduled for 10:30 a.m. and 5:45 p.m.