The U.S. Women’s Water Polo team is off to a 3-0 start at the 2017 Kunshan Cup in Kunshan, China. The tournament will be taking place from May 29-June 3 and serves as a preliminary event for the 2017 FINA World League Super Final that starts in Shanghai, China on June 6.
The team includes Rio gold medalists Melissa Seidemann, Aria Fischer, Makenzie Fischer, Kiley Neushul, and Maddie Musselman.
After posting three straight victories with goals from a variety of players, the U.S. team will move on to the quarterfinals on June 1.
May 29 – USA 11 Netherlands 10
Team USA jumped out to a 4-1 lead after the first quarter and held a 7-4 lead at halftime. The Netherlands rallied in the third quarter outscoring Team USA 3-1 to close within a goal at 8-7 after three. The two teams were even in the fourth quarter with three goals each and the United States was able to hang on for the 11-10 win.
The United States went 3/5 on power plays and did not attempt a penalty while the Netherlands went 5/6 on power plays and 1/1 on penalty shots.
Scoring
USA 11 (4, 3, 1, 3) M. Musselman 3, M. Seidemann 2, A. Fischer 2, J. Raney 1, K. Neushul 1, J. Neushul 1, M. Fischer 1
NED 10 (1, 3, 3, 3)
Saves – USA – M. Rycraw 6
6×5 – USA – 3/5 – NED 5/6
Penalties – USA – 0/0 – NED 1/1
May 30 – USA 16 China 6
Team USA took command early opening up a 4-1 lead after the first quarter and an 8-1 lead at halftime. China looked to rally with three goals in the third but that was countered by four goals from Team USA as their advantage swelled to 12-4. The United States added four more goals in the fourth to win going away 16-6.
Both teams were successful on the advantage with the United States going 6/9 on power plays and China turning in a 3/4 performance. Team USA did not attempt any penalties while China went 1/1. Makenzie Fischer (Laguna Beach, CA/Stanford/SET) and Jamie Neushul (Goleta, CA/Stanford/Santa Barbara 805) added three goals each in the win. Kiley Neushul (Goleta, CA/Stanford/NYAC) bolstered the attack with five steals, four assists and two goals.
Scoring
USA 16 (4, 4, 4, 4) M. Musselman 4, M. Fischer 3, J. Neushul 3, K. Neushul 2, M. Brooks 1, A. Fischer 1, M. Seidemann 1, A. Williams 1
CHN 6 (1, 0, 3, 2)
Saves – USA – G. Stone 4
6×5 – USA – 6/9 – CHN 3/4
Penalties – USA – 0/0 – CHN 1/1
May 31 – USA 10 Russia 2
Team USA went ahead 3-1 after the first only to see Russia rally in the second. The Russians outscored the United States 1-0 to trail just 3-2 at halftime. Everything changed in the second half as the United States blanked Russia 7-0 over the final two quarters to turn a tight game into a comfortable victory 10-2.
The United States went 2/6 on the power play while Russia was 0/6 with neither side attempting a penalty shot.
Scoring
USA 10 (3, 0, 3, 4)
RUS 2 (1, 1, 0, 0)
Saves – USA – M. Rycraw 11
6×5 – USA 2/6 – RUS – 0/6
Penalties – USA 0/0 – RUS 0/0
2017 Kunshan Cup Schedule
May 29 – Netherlands 1:30am pt
May 30 – China 4:30am pt
May 31 – Russia 1:30am pt
June 1 – TBD (Quarterfinals)
June 2 – TBD (Semifinals)
June 3 – TBD (Finals)
Pic is from USC UCLA…but Maddie is scoring a lot of goals
Excellent Team performance.