March 3, 2006
TEMPE, Ariz. - The No. 8 Arizona State University water polo team returned home for one game this weekend and handed visiting Mountain Pacific Sports Federation foe Pacific an 18-4 defeat Friday night at the Mona Plummer Aquatic Center in Tempe. Ten different Sun Devils scored to help ASU improve to 10-3 overall on the year and remain perfect in the MPSF at 2-0. The Tigers slipped to 0-7 overall and 0-4 in the conference.
The Sun Devils came out on fire from the start as Addison Doud quickly drew a four-meter penalty that fellow rookie Rowie Webster would score on just 19 seconds into the game. Webster, the reigning Co-MPSF/Mikasa Player of the Week, led all scorers with four goals on the day and tallied twice in the first quarter. As a team, the Sun Devils scored eight times in the first stanza to open an 8-0 lead. Webster and Katy Lawlor each scored twice in the first while single goals were recorded by Katie Hedley, Lindsay Williams, Tessa Wyborny and Adriane Mota.
In the second, the Tigers scored four goals to pull with-in four, but Heather Rempfer and Traci Aparicio both scored to send the game into the second half with ASU ahead, 10-4. The third quarter saw more of the same as Webster netted her final two goals of the contest while Ashley Bower, Wyborny, Aparicio and Mota also scored once. The final quarter of play saw goals scored by Kimberlee Stevens and Lawlor, who completed her hat trick.
Of the 18 goals scored, eight were assisted by teammates with Stevens recording a trio of helpers while Kim Buck, Raelyn Ritchie, Rempfer, Elaine Bentley and Doud each added one. Defensively, Windy Ballejos played three quarters and halted seven shots while starter Caylinn Wallace had no saves after facing zero shots in the first quarter. The Sun Devils were whistled for 11 ejections with UOP scoring twice on while drawing just two (scoring once).
The 18 goals scored by the Sun Devils marks the second-highest output in team history, with only a 20-2 defeat of Marist on January 24, 2004, at the Michigan Invitational topping Friday night's output. The 18-4 decision, however, did set a few records as the goal total was the most ASU has scored in an MPSF contest (old mark was a 13-4 victory over UOP on March 14, 2004); the most scored in any home game (old mark was a 14-0 defeat of UC Santa Cruz on February 1, 2003) and ties the mark for largest margin of victory in a home game at 14 (14-0 vs. UCSC in 2003).
Arizona State now returns to the road next weekend for a trio of tough contests. The Sun Devils open the weekend at No. 10 UC Santa Barbara on Friday before facing No. 3 UCLA on Saturday and No. 4 Loyola Marymount on Sunday. The games with UCSB and UCLA are MPSF games.
Arizona State Goal Scorers:
Rowie Webster (4), Katy Lawlor (3), Traci Aparicio (2), Adriane Mota (2), Tessa Wyborny (2), Ashley Bower, Katie Hedley, Heather Rempfer, Kimberlee Stevens, Lindsay Williams
Arizona State Saves:
Windy Ballejos (6)