Water Polo Wednesday: Arizona State Hosts Loaded Invite

Three invitationals–hosted by Arizona State, Loyola Marymount and San Diego State–took place this past weekend. And there was plenty of individual matches as the season begins to wind down, with about a month to go before conference championships are held.

ASU Invitational, March 22-25
The third-ranked Arizona State Sun Devils hosted No. 2 Stanford, No. 18 Michigan, No. 19 Hartwick, Colorado State, Pomona-Pitzer, California Baptist and La Verne.

Arizona State dominated the first day of competition, sweeping Colorado State 17-7 and Pomona-Pitzer 15-3. The 17 goals scored by the Sun Devils in the game over the Rams was the highest total by the team this season. ASU scored six goals in the first quarter and never looked back. Shannon Haas scored five goals, equaling her season total, and Alicia Brightwell scored a hat trick. The Sun Devils again scored five goals in the first period of the Pomona-Pitzer game on their way to a 15-3 triumph over the Sagehens. Brightwell scored five goals during the game and Haas put three goals in the net.

ASU took the next day off in preparation for meeting the second-ranked Cardinal on Sunday. They fell, 17-7, as Stanford jumped out to a 4-0 first period lead and extended that to a 9-3 lead at the half. Steffens and Kiley Neushul scored three goals apiece, with Annika Dries, Ashley Grossman, Kaitlyn Lo, Melissa Seidemann and Anna Yelizarova scored two each. Hass scored a hat trick for the Sun Devils, bringing her season total to 46 goals–one shy of her career season best.

Rebounding the next day, Arizona State improved to a 19-5 mark with their 12-3 triumph over No. 19 Hartwick. The Sun Devils were forced to compete without Brightwell, who was injured during the Stanford game. Picking up the slack was Anna Kertes (four goals and four assists) and Haas (three goals). E.B. Keeve earned 13 saves and the defense blocked several shots, holding the Hawks to the lowest point total this season.

Stanford also claimed victory over Colorado State (16-6) and Hartwick (13-4) during the ASU Invitational. As in the ASU game, the Cardinal began the game against Colorado State with a 4-0 first quarter lead. Seidemann scored three of her five goals in the first period to lead the Cardinal, with Lo putting one in the net. Stanford put the game out of reach in the third period, scoring six goals–including a 4-0 run with goals from Cory Dodson, Lo, Neushul and Gurpreet Sohi. Shelby Schaefer and Stephanie Weed scored two each for the Rams.

The Cardinal finished out the invitational with a 13-4 win over Hartwick. Stanford began with a 7-goal first period, beginning just 40 seconds into the match. Kaley Dodson, Seidemann and Steffens all contributed hat tricks, with Anna Yelizarova putting in two goals and single goals from Dries and Ashley Grossman. Sami Capparelli was the Hawks' high scorer with two goals.

Michigan made the most of its trip to Tempe with a perfect 4-0 record at the ASU Invitational. Michigan began action on Saturday with the first of three games, defeating Colorado State 18-4. Presley Pender earned her second career hat trick, with Bryce Beckwith and Lauren Colton contributing two apiece. Alex Adamson earned seven saves for Michigan.

In their second game, the Wolverines scored five goals against Pomona-Pitzer on their way to a 13-6 victory. Michigan took the lead 5-1 in the first quarter and never looked back. Beckwith scored three goals and Pender, Colton, Kiki Golden and Lauren Dudley put two goals in apiece. Arcidiacono scored twice for Pomona-Pitzer to lead the Rams.

Michigan ended the day with a 10-4 win over California Baptist. The Wolverines used a strong finish with a five-goal second half to defeat the Lancers. California Baptist was tied with Michigan 2-2 after the first quarter; Michigan added three and the Lancers one to bring the score to 5-3 at halftime. Scoring two goals each were Pender, Beckwith, Golden and Ali Thomason for Michigan, with California Baptist's Molly Grtichen putting in two as well.

On Sunday, Michigan ended their tournament play with a 20-2 rout of La Verne. The Wolverines now hold a nine-game winning streak. Twelve Wolverines scored, with three–Dudley, Audrey Pratt and Beckwith–getting three goals each. Beckwith scored 10 goals over the course of the tournament. Alex Adamson and Julia Campbell split goalie duties, with Adamson earning three saves in the first quarter and Campbell saving four shots and getting two assists.

Before Hartwick's losses to Stanford and Arizona State on the last day of the ASU Invitational, the Hawks posted four victories in tournament action.

On Saturday, Hartwick defeated Pomona-Pitzer 19-7 and California Baptist 6-1. Sami Capparelli and Cayley Tonkin scored five goals each to lead the Hawks. Lily Martinez, Jemma Dendy Young and Kamila Zakirova added two each. Michaela Davies earned nine saves for the Hawks, with Haley Cox taking over in the fourth quarter and had four saves. Capparelli earned the first goal of the game 19 seconds into the match on the way to Hartwick's 8-1 first quarter lead.

Against the Lancers, Capparelli and Ermakova earned hat tricks to lead the Hawks. Hannah Evans was California Baptist's high goal scorer with two. Hartwick led 4-2 at the end of the first period and was ahead 8-5 at the half. Hartwick added three goals in the third quarter while holding Pomona-Pitzer to just one.

In Sunday's action, Hartwick defeated Colorado State 18-5 and La Verne 13-5. Hartwick's record was 22-7 at that point. Jemma Dendy Young scored a season-high seven goals to pace the Hawks. Hartwick led the Rams 3-0 at the end of the fist quarter and, thanks to a 9-goal second period, was ahead 12-4 at halftime. Hartwick outscored Colorado State 6-1 in the third period and only allowed one Ram second-half goal with 12 seconds left in the match.

Capparelli was the star of the La Verne match, scoring three goals. Lilly Gall, Kylie Traube and Kaura Kuzma scored twice. Alex Gudeneau scored a hat trick for the Leopards. Haley Cox had eight saves for Hartwick, and Lauren Shepard blocked 11 shots for La Verne. The Leopards were held scoreless through the first quarter, and Hartwick enjoyed an 8-3 lead at the half.

LMU Invitational March 22-23
No. 14 Loyola Marymount hosted 11th-ranked Princeton as well as Cal State San Bernardino, Cal State East Bay, Cal State Monterey Bay, Sonoma State and Whittier College at their LMU Invitational in Westchester, California. For complete tournament results, please click here.

The Lions shut out Sonoma State in the first half and scored the first nine goals of the contest on their way to a 10-2 defeat of the Seawolves. Alexandra Hanny put in three goals for Loyola Marymount. LMU then handed Cal State East Bay a 16-5 defeat. The second period proved to be the key for the Lions as they scored eight goals and were up 14-1 at the half. Danielle Johnson scored four goals to lead LMU, with Ivana Castro turning in three goals.

The next day LMU continued their winning ways with a 13-3 win over Cal State Monterey Bay. Jessica Morelos and Castro had four goals each for the Lions. The final match pitted Loyola Marymount against No. 11 Princeton; LMU came out on top, 7-5. A three-goal rally in the third quarter enabled the Lions to gain the victory. Princeton was also hampered by an inability to connect on shots, making only 5 of 23 attempts.

That was Princeton's only loss of the tournament. They were victorious over CSU Monterey Bay (12-4), Sonoma State (15-5) and CSU East Bay (12-7). The Tigers leaped out to a 6-1 lead and never trailed. Katie Rigler scored a hat trick, and Jackie Walters scored two for the Otters. Princeton took an 11-1 lead over the Seawolves and received hat tricks from Rigler, Kelly Gross and Pippa Temple. In the East Bay match, Princeton went on an 8-1 run after trailing early in the game to pull away from the Pioneers. Camille Hooks scored four times for the Tigers.

Aztec Mini Tournament, March 22-23
San Diego State, sixth in the nation, hosted No. 9 Long Beach State, Brown and Redlands March 22-23 at Aztec Aquaplex. The Aztecs began with a 6-5 win over the 49ers. Long Beach State had an early 2-1 lead on goals by Justine Morgan and Christina Kotsia. Emily Whalen shot the only goal for San Diego State in the first half. Down 6-4 with 1:55 to go in the game, Long Beach State's Kayla Robert scored 15 seconds later, but San Diego State was able to run out the clock.

Amber Pezzolla scored five goals to lead the Aztecs for a 11-5 victory over Brown with Taelor Moreno chipping in three. San Diego State scored three times in the third period and added three more in the fourth to pull away from the Bears. The Aztecs capped off their mini tournament with a 12-5 defeat of Redlands. Nikole Ferrari scored a hat trick with Pezzolla adding two. San Diego State scored five goals in the third period for a 9-3 lead to enter the fourth quarter.

Long Beach State added wins of 10-2 over Brown and 11-2 over Redlands to conclude their portion of the tournament. Christina Kotsia scored three goals to pace the 49ers to a 6-1 run in the second half. In their second match of the days, Long Beach State used a 7-0 first-half lead to pace the 49ers to their victory over the Bulldogs.

INDIVIDUAL CONTESTS

No. 1 USC vs. No. 8 Hawai'I, March 23
The top-ranked USC Trojans scored seven times during the third quarter on their way to a 15-7 win over No. 8 Hawai'I in Honolulu. Monica Vavic scored four times in that third period. The Rainbow Wahine held 2-1 and 3-2 leads during the first half before USC took a 5-4 lead into halftime and then exploded for their eight-goal third period. Besides Vavic's four goals, Colleen O'Donnell, Hannah Buckling and Kaleigh Gilchrist each scored twice. Paula Chillida put in four goals for Hawai'i.

Harvard vs. No. 10 San Jose State, March 21
The Crimson continued their trip to California with a non-conference match against 10th-ranked San Jose State and was defeated 18-8. The Spartans led 6-1 after the first quarter and 13-2 at the half. Victoria Smith scored a single-match, career-high five goals in the first half alone for San Jose State. The seven-goal second quarter was a season best. Anna Natalizio and Kelli Leabo scored three goals for the Spartans.

Harvard vs. No. 2 Stanford, March 22
Before their appearance at the ASU Invitational, the Cardinal tuned up after being off for two weeks for finals with an 18-5 victory over Harvard at the Avery Aquatic Center. The Cardinal was led by a four-goal effort from Maggie Steffens, with Kaley Dodson, Kiley Neushul and Melissa Seidemann each contributing three. Steffens actually completed her hat trick with 1:20 remaining in the first period. Stanford's 8-0 run at the beginning of the contest led to a 8-1 halftime advantage and a 14-4 lead by the end of the third quarter.

Harvard vs. No. 5 California, March 23
The next day after losing to Stanford, Harvard traveled to Berkeley to face the Godlen Bears. Emily Csikos scored five goals to lead Cal to a 22-9 victory over the Crimson. Csikos is now only two goals short of reaching the top spot on Cal's all time scoring list; as of the Harvard game, she has 210 career goals. Ashley Young got a hat trick, and six others–Breda Vosters, Dana Ochsner, Missy Hale, Kelly McKee, Kirstn Mase and Sierra Smiley–put in two each. Cal exploded with an eight-goal first period to start the assault.

CSU Bakersfield vs. No. 4 UCLA, March 24
Returning to MPSF conference action, the fourth-ranked Bruins took care of the Roadrunners, 14-7. The Bruins improved to a 19-3 record (2-1 conference), snapping CSU Bakersfield's two-match winning streak. Four players–Kodi Hill, Rachel Fattal, Gisselle Naranjo and Leslee Kaczmarek–scored two goals each for the Bruins, while the Roadrunners' Nicola Barrett put the ball in the net four times. UCLA, ahead 4-1 at the half, used a five-goal third period to move ahead of CSU Bakersfield.

Santa Clara vs. No. 10 San Jose State, March 23
The Spartans followed up their victory over Harvard with a 16-6 victory over Santa Clara. Timi Molnar scored six goals, with Rae Lekness adding four. San Jose State players scored on their first four shots. With reserves taking over in the second quarter, the score got closer as the game ended 6-4 at the half. But two scores by Anna Natalizio, plus one by Lekness, in the third quarter gave the Spartans a 9-4 lead and the game was in hand.

Gannon vs. No. 12 Indiana, March 23
Notre Dame-Ohio vs. No. 12 Indiana, March 23
The 12th-ranked Hoosiers traveled to Erie, Pennsylvania, to take on conference foe Gannon and Notre Dame-Ohio. In the Notre Dame-Ohio game, first on the docket for Indiana, Shae Fournier tied an Indiana record for the most goals in a single game with six, becoming only one of six players to do so. The Hoosiers scored four goals in both the first and second quarter to take an 8-4 lead at halftime. Every Indiana player saw time in the pool with eight scoring at least one goal and nine getting at least one steal.

Indiana took leads of 6-1 after the first quarter and 12-1 at the half to wind up with a 15-4 victory over the Gannon Knights. Meghan Lappan scored a hat trick with just three shots, and Amanda Redfern also put three in the net for the Hoosiers.

Marist vs. No. 13 Cal State Northridge, March 19
Concordia-Irvine vs. No. 13 Cal State Northridge, March 19
Kelcie Ferreira and Lindsy Nelson each scored a hat trick to lead the Matadors to a 13-8 triumph over Marist College. Cal State Northridge led 3-2 after the first period and 7-6 at halftime. It still was close at the end of the third period (9-8), but the Matadors outscored the Red Foxes 4-2 for their victory. Melissa Doll and Marisa Young scored two goals each for CSUN.

Ferreira and Nelson repeated their hat tricks in the Concordia game. Eight different players scored at least one goal to give the Matadors a 14-10 victory over the Eagles. CSUN led throughout the game, posting scores of 2-0 after the first period, 7-4 at the half and 10-6 at the end of the third quarter.

No. 20 Pacific vs. No. 13 Cal State Northridge, March 23
Jumping out to a 4-0 lead after the first quarter–three goals in the first 1:47 of the first period–Cal State Northridge handed the 20th-ranked Pacific Tigers a 9-6 defeat. The Matadors had a 5-2 lead at the half, but Pacific scored twice in the third period to tighten the score to 5-4. Northridge exploded for four goals in the final period to put the game out of reach. Marissa Young scored four goals for CSUN, with Leah Janke adding two.

No. 20 Pacific vs. No. 15 UC Santa Barbara, March 24
The Tigers rebounded the next day, handing the Gauchos a 10-7 loss in Santa Barbara. Pacific got a 4-0 lead in the first quarter and then hung on to a 6-4 halftime advantage. Only one goal was scored by each team in the third quarter. Pacific scored four goals in four minutes to give the Tigers their first Big West Conference victory. Taylor Adair scored four goals for Pacific with Brydie Pye adding three; Samantha Murphy scored a hat trick for UCSB.

Harvard vs. No. 17 UC Davis, March 18
Fresno Pacific vs. No. 17 UC Davis, March 18
The Aggies earned a pair of non-conference victories, defeating Harvard 18-9 and Fresno Pacific 15-3. The pair of wins stopped UC Davis' five-game losing streak. Carmen Eggert scored five of her six goals against the Crimson before halftime. She added three assists and three steals. Keelia Houston also turned in a hat trick for the Aggies, with Jessica Dunn, Danelle Kenny and Hannah Curran adding two apiece. Against the Sunbirds, Eggert, Dunn, Alex Rawlinson, Courtney Weddle and Paige Oreglia each scored two goals. Haley Cameron had a career-high five saves and added three assists as she played in her first complete game as a goalie for UC Davis.

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