Feb. 22, 2003
TEMPE, Ariz. - In a season of firsts, the No. 20 Arizona State water polo team (7-7) was able to add two more to the list Saturday evening as it upset No. 18 UC Irvine at the Anteater Aquatic Center in Irvine, Calif. The win marked the first for the Sun Devils when they were ranked in the national polls after going 0-5 in their previous tries this year. The victory also was the first over the Anteaters after dropping a 9-4 decision last year and a 10-3 setback two weeks ago in San Diego.
UCI jumped out to quick 2-1 lead after the first quarter before ASU answered back with three of its own in the second period. An Anteater's goal in the second cut the Sun Devil lead to 4-3 at the intermission. In the third quarter, ASU tacked on two more goals to UCI's one to build a 6-4 lead heading into the final stanza. Both teams added a goal in the fourth quarter to bring the final to 7-5.
Heather Rempfer (Fr., Lodi, Calif.) led the offense with a pair of goals. Katie Davis (Jr., Riverside, Calif.), Gili Kollan (So., Kiriat Bialik, Israel), Daya Mau (Fr., Honolulu, Hawai'i) and Tessa Wyborny (Fr., Walnut Creek, Calif.) also added goals in the Sun Devil victory.
Arizona State returns to the road for the fourth weekend in a row next week with a pair of games in Claremont, Calif. The Sun Devils will face Pomona-Pitzer at 10 a.m. PST before facing Cal State San Bernadino at 1 p.m. PST. Both games will be played on the PPC campus.