TEMPE, Ariz. -- In their first game of the spring, the Sun Devil water polo team defeated San Diego State, 13-4, on Saturday morning at the Mona Plummer Aquatic Center.
Sophomore Maud Koopman led the attack with five goals, two assists and six steals. The attacker showed no signs of rust, scoring her first goal early on in the second period and then tacking on three more in the fourth frame.
Junior Lena Mihailovic added three goals and two steals of her own, a feat head coach Todd Clapper praised.
"I'm really happy with, in particular, how Lena [Mihailovic] came out," Clapper said. "Sometimes in the past, she has second-guessed some of her shooting. She was really confident and really decisive today, offensively, and I was really proud of her."
On the other end of the pool, redshirt junior Mia Rycraw posted eight saves on the morning, allowing just three goals off of 23 attempts. The California-native posted critical saves early on in the match, including making two saves to allow the Devils to take the lead in the first frame.
Rycraw was backed up by her defense who posted 15 saves, collectively. Despite having a few new players on center defense, the defense came together to play aggressively.
"I felt like for the most part our defense was really good," Clapper said. "I was really happy and felt like our press defense played really well. People were blocking really well on the shots," Clapper added.
San Diego State struck first, putting one on the board in part by a penalty shot. The teams battled back-and-forth in scoring until junior Kayla Casas laced one into the pipes for a Devils lead, making the score 4-3. Mihailovic tacked on another goal to increase ASU's lead to two going into the second period.
Never surrendering their lead for the remainder of the game, ASU added two goals in the second period by Koopman and sophomore Peggy-Jean Allin. The Devils defense came back to shut out the Aztecs in the third frame while tacking on four goals, extending their lead 11-3.
Koopman and Mihailovic each fired one into the net in the fourth quarter to seal the victory for the Devils.
The Devils return to play tomorrow, Jan. 28, to take on Wagner College and Santa Barbara in a double-header at 9 a.m. and 1 p.m., respectively.
Sophomore Maud Koopman led the attack with five goals, two assists and six steals. The attacker showed no signs of rust, scoring her first goal early on in the second period and then tacking on three more in the fourth frame.
Junior Lena Mihailovic added three goals and two steals of her own, a feat head coach Todd Clapper praised.
"I'm really happy with, in particular, how Lena [Mihailovic] came out," Clapper said. "Sometimes in the past, she has second-guessed some of her shooting. She was really confident and really decisive today, offensively, and I was really proud of her."
On the other end of the pool, redshirt junior Mia Rycraw posted eight saves on the morning, allowing just three goals off of 23 attempts. The California-native posted critical saves early on in the match, including making two saves to allow the Devils to take the lead in the first frame.
Rycraw was backed up by her defense who posted 15 saves, collectively. Despite having a few new players on center defense, the defense came together to play aggressively.
"I felt like for the most part our defense was really good," Clapper said. "I was really happy and felt like our press defense played really well. People were blocking really well on the shots," Clapper added.
San Diego State struck first, putting one on the board in part by a penalty shot. The teams battled back-and-forth in scoring until junior Kayla Casas laced one into the pipes for a Devils lead, making the score 4-3. Mihailovic tacked on another goal to increase ASU's lead to two going into the second period.
Never surrendering their lead for the remainder of the game, ASU added two goals in the second period by Koopman and sophomore Peggy-Jean Allin. The Devils defense came back to shut out the Aztecs in the third frame while tacking on four goals, extending their lead 11-3.
Koopman and Mihailovic each fired one into the net in the fourth quarter to seal the victory for the Devils.
The Devils return to play tomorrow, Jan. 28, to take on Wagner College and Santa Barbara in a double-header at 9 a.m. and 1 p.m., respectively.