San Diego, Calif. -- The fifth-ranked Arizona State Water Polo team amassed an impressive 37 goals in the opening day of the 2017 Triton Invitation en rout to a pair of wins Saturday at the Canyonview Aquatic Center.
No. 5 ASU came out hot in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader, combining for 18 goals, including four different players with a multi-goal outing.
Sophomore attacker Maud Koopman lead the way for the Sun Devils, netting five goals and carding three steals in the win. Alkistis Benekou followed Koopman with four goals, while Kayla Casas and Lena Mihailovic both added three goals each in the Sun Devils highest scoring output of the young season.
Arizona State opened the scoring just 27 seconds into the game as Mihailovic netted her first goal of the morning. From there, ASU powered their way to six first quarter goals to send the game to the second with ASU holding a 6-2 lead.
The Sun Devils added five more goals in the second, while holding Sonoma to just one goal, sending the game to halftime with the Sundevils leading 11-3.
From there, the stifling Devil defense took charge, shutting the Seawolves out in the second half of the game to finish the morning with a 18-3 victory.
The Sun Devils were lead in goal by Taylor Barrett and Sophia Burgess who each recorded four saves in the first half of the Saturday morning contest.
Game Two vs. UC Davis: (ASU 19, UCD 9)
The Sun Devils continued the scoring onslaught in the second game of the day, this time scoring 19 goals, setting a new season high after scoring 18 in the morning game.
ASU found themselves in a tight game, ending the first quarter tied 4-4 with the Aggies. However, the Sun Devils would seperate themselves just a bit, pushing their lead to 9-7 at the half.
Arizona State would pull awa in the third, outscoring UC Davis 6-1 to hold a 15-8 lead heading to the final quarter. The Sun Devils did not let up from there, holding the Aggies to just one goal in the fourth, closing out the 19-9 victory.
In total, six Sun Devils finished the game with a double-digit scoring effort, including Mihailovic and Claudia Abad who scored three goals in the win.
Mia Rycraw anchored the ASU defense with 15 saves in the contest while adding a pair of steals. The 15 saves Saturday marks a new conference high in a single game topping the previous high of 14 set by UCLA's Carlee Kapana on January 15th.
The Sun Devils will return to the pool on Sunday to face UC Irvine at 1:30 p.m. AZT. Should the Sun Devils win, they will advance to play in the championship game scheduled to start at 6:50 p.m. AZT.
"Against Sonoma State we were able to build back into the game after having last weekend off," said head coach Todd Clapper. "It really was a solid performance from everyone. Against UC Davis, we tightened up our defense in the second half and really set each other up well on offense with good ball movement. I was really pleased to see how PJ Allin and Claudia Abad played offensively. They were disciplined and confident. I think that we really showed where we are headed as a team today."
Game One vs. Sonoma: (ASU 18, Sonoma 3)No. 5 ASU came out hot in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader, combining for 18 goals, including four different players with a multi-goal outing.
Sophomore attacker Maud Koopman lead the way for the Sun Devils, netting five goals and carding three steals in the win. Alkistis Benekou followed Koopman with four goals, while Kayla Casas and Lena Mihailovic both added three goals each in the Sun Devils highest scoring output of the young season.
Arizona State opened the scoring just 27 seconds into the game as Mihailovic netted her first goal of the morning. From there, ASU powered their way to six first quarter goals to send the game to the second with ASU holding a 6-2 lead.
The Sun Devils added five more goals in the second, while holding Sonoma to just one goal, sending the game to halftime with the Sundevils leading 11-3.
From there, the stifling Devil defense took charge, shutting the Seawolves out in the second half of the game to finish the morning with a 18-3 victory.
The Sun Devils were lead in goal by Taylor Barrett and Sophia Burgess who each recorded four saves in the first half of the Saturday morning contest.
Game Two vs. UC Davis: (ASU 19, UCD 9)
The Sun Devils continued the scoring onslaught in the second game of the day, this time scoring 19 goals, setting a new season high after scoring 18 in the morning game.
ASU found themselves in a tight game, ending the first quarter tied 4-4 with the Aggies. However, the Sun Devils would seperate themselves just a bit, pushing their lead to 9-7 at the half.
Arizona State would pull awa in the third, outscoring UC Davis 6-1 to hold a 15-8 lead heading to the final quarter. The Sun Devils did not let up from there, holding the Aggies to just one goal in the fourth, closing out the 19-9 victory.
In total, six Sun Devils finished the game with a double-digit scoring effort, including Mihailovic and Claudia Abad who scored three goals in the win.
Mia Rycraw anchored the ASU defense with 15 saves in the contest while adding a pair of steals. The 15 saves Saturday marks a new conference high in a single game topping the previous high of 14 set by UCLA's Carlee Kapana on January 15th.
The Sun Devils will return to the pool on Sunday to face UC Irvine at 1:30 p.m. AZT. Should the Sun Devils win, they will advance to play in the championship game scheduled to start at 6:50 p.m. AZT.