SAN DIEGO, Calif. – The No. 6 Arizona State University water polo team picked up their second victory of the day at the UCSD Triton Invitational, defeating No. 10 UC Davis, 14-5, to advance to the Invitational semifinals tomorrow afternoon at 1:30 P.M. MST.
Arizona State captures their seventh victory over a team ranked in the CWPA Top-25, including their second over a Top-10 foe. ASU outscored their opponents, 25-10, over the two matches today and moved to 5-0 in neutral matches with the victory.
The Sun Devils will take on fellow MPSF member No. 4 UCLA tomorrow afternoon at 1:30 P.M. MST with a spot in the Invitational finals on the line.
Powered by a dominant second period in which the Sun Devils outscored the Aggies 6-0, Arizona State (8-1) used a career day from Julia Reyes to defeat the Aggies. Reyes recorded her first career hat trick to help pave the way for the Sun Devil victory. It only took one half for Maud Koopman to record her team-high fourth hat trick, as the junior scored all three of her first half goals in the lucrative second period. The Sun Devil defense, headed by Mia Rycraw, held a potent UC Davis attack (10 goals/game over their last five) scoreless over a 10:58 stretch in the first half, including the entire second period.
Multi-goal performances from four different Sun Devils helped ASU tie their highest scoring output of the season (W, 14-9 vs. No. 21 Princeton). The goal differential of nine represented the largest margin of victory for the Arizona State since they defeated No. 25 Cal Baptist, 12-3, in the season opener.
After UC Davis (5-5) opened the scoring in the first period, the Sun Devils would respond and quickly find themselves back in the lead. Kayla Casas scored with 5:41 left in the first and tied it at one for the Sun Devils after getting in the scorebook earlier in the day. A little over 30 seconds later, Julia Reyes matched her teammate with a goal of her own to put the Sun Devils ahead for the first time, 2-1, with 5:08 left in the first.
With both teams battling to find their offensive rhythm midway through the first, the Sun Devils would earn a penalty shot with a chance to extend the lead and earn momentum. Maud Koopman would step up and cash in the opportunity, putting the Sun Devils up 3-1. Koopman was not done in the period, answering a UC Davis goal with one of her own, scoring on the power play to put the Sun Devils up 4-2 at the end of the first period.
The scoring would just be getting started for the Sun Devils, as the offense began to fire on all cylinders and play unselfishly in the second period. Arizona State scored four goals in the first 3:30 of the period, with both Lena Mihailovic and Bente Rogge tallying two-goals apiece. Each notched their fifth multi-goal performance of the year. Alkistis Benekou would add her 20th goal of the season, to help ASU outscore UC Davis 6-0 in the period. Maud Koopman scored on the Sun Devils final possession of the half, giving Arizona State a 10-2 lead heading into the break.
Julia Reyes opened the scoring in the second half, registering her second goal of the game to give the Sun Devils a 11-2 lead. A UC Davis goal with 4:44 left in the third period would snap a streak of seven consecutive unanswered ASU goals. A career night would continue for Reyes, as she responded to a pair of UC Davis goals with a goal to make it 12-4 at the end of the third period.
A back-and-forth final period would ensue, with the Arizona State defense settling in and taking control of the game allowing the Aggies attack little space to operate. Rosie Huck put the first tally on the scoreboard for ASU in the final period, her first goal of the game. After scoring earlier in the day, Catherine Simko joined in on the scoring once again to give the Sun Devils a 14-4 lead. A UC Davis goal with 1:34 left snapped another long scoring drought for the Aggies, this one lasting 9:07 between the third and fourth periods. That would be all the Aggies could muster in the final period, with the Sun Devils ending the game on a 11-3 run over the final 26:58 of the contest. Mia Rycraw finished the evening with nine saves.
The Sun Devils move on to the UCSD Triton Invitational semifinals against No. 4 UCLA. They will take on the Bruins tomorrow at 1:30 P.M. MST in Triton Pool. ASU will then, depending on the results of the semifinals matchups, move on to face either No. 2 USC or No. 7 UC Irvine. Stay tuned to our Twitter and Facebook accounts and check out our website for more information.
Goals: Koopman (3), Reyes (3), Mihailovic (2), Rogge (2), Huck, Simko, Casas, Benekou
Assists: Casas (2), Koopman (2), Beaudet, Rogge
Steals: Koopman (3), Simko (2), Mihailovic, Benekou, Casas, Reyes
Saves: Rycraw (9)
Arizona State captures their seventh victory over a team ranked in the CWPA Top-25, including their second over a Top-10 foe. ASU outscored their opponents, 25-10, over the two matches today and moved to 5-0 in neutral matches with the victory.
The Sun Devils will take on fellow MPSF member No. 4 UCLA tomorrow afternoon at 1:30 P.M. MST with a spot in the Invitational finals on the line.
Powered by a dominant second period in which the Sun Devils outscored the Aggies 6-0, Arizona State (8-1) used a career day from Julia Reyes to defeat the Aggies. Reyes recorded her first career hat trick to help pave the way for the Sun Devil victory. It only took one half for Maud Koopman to record her team-high fourth hat trick, as the junior scored all three of her first half goals in the lucrative second period. The Sun Devil defense, headed by Mia Rycraw, held a potent UC Davis attack (10 goals/game over their last five) scoreless over a 10:58 stretch in the first half, including the entire second period.
Multi-goal performances from four different Sun Devils helped ASU tie their highest scoring output of the season (W, 14-9 vs. No. 21 Princeton). The goal differential of nine represented the largest margin of victory for the Arizona State since they defeated No. 25 Cal Baptist, 12-3, in the season opener.
After UC Davis (5-5) opened the scoring in the first period, the Sun Devils would respond and quickly find themselves back in the lead. Kayla Casas scored with 5:41 left in the first and tied it at one for the Sun Devils after getting in the scorebook earlier in the day. A little over 30 seconds later, Julia Reyes matched her teammate with a goal of her own to put the Sun Devils ahead for the first time, 2-1, with 5:08 left in the first.
With both teams battling to find their offensive rhythm midway through the first, the Sun Devils would earn a penalty shot with a chance to extend the lead and earn momentum. Maud Koopman would step up and cash in the opportunity, putting the Sun Devils up 3-1. Koopman was not done in the period, answering a UC Davis goal with one of her own, scoring on the power play to put the Sun Devils up 4-2 at the end of the first period.
The scoring would just be getting started for the Sun Devils, as the offense began to fire on all cylinders and play unselfishly in the second period. Arizona State scored four goals in the first 3:30 of the period, with both Lena Mihailovic and Bente Rogge tallying two-goals apiece. Each notched their fifth multi-goal performance of the year. Alkistis Benekou would add her 20th goal of the season, to help ASU outscore UC Davis 6-0 in the period. Maud Koopman scored on the Sun Devils final possession of the half, giving Arizona State a 10-2 lead heading into the break.
Julia Reyes opened the scoring in the second half, registering her second goal of the game to give the Sun Devils a 11-2 lead. A UC Davis goal with 4:44 left in the third period would snap a streak of seven consecutive unanswered ASU goals. A career night would continue for Reyes, as she responded to a pair of UC Davis goals with a goal to make it 12-4 at the end of the third period.
A back-and-forth final period would ensue, with the Arizona State defense settling in and taking control of the game allowing the Aggies attack little space to operate. Rosie Huck put the first tally on the scoreboard for ASU in the final period, her first goal of the game. After scoring earlier in the day, Catherine Simko joined in on the scoring once again to give the Sun Devils a 14-4 lead. A UC Davis goal with 1:34 left snapped another long scoring drought for the Aggies, this one lasting 9:07 between the third and fourth periods. That would be all the Aggies could muster in the final period, with the Sun Devils ending the game on a 11-3 run over the final 26:58 of the contest. Mia Rycraw finished the evening with nine saves.
The Sun Devils move on to the UCSD Triton Invitational semifinals against No. 4 UCLA. They will take on the Bruins tomorrow at 1:30 P.M. MST in Triton Pool. ASU will then, depending on the results of the semifinals matchups, move on to face either No. 2 USC or No. 7 UC Irvine. Stay tuned to our Twitter and Facebook accounts and check out our website for more information.
Goals: Koopman (3), Reyes (3), Mihailovic (2), Rogge (2), Huck, Simko, Casas, Benekou
Assists: Casas (2), Koopman (2), Beaudet, Rogge
Steals: Koopman (3), Simko (2), Mihailovic, Benekou, Casas, Reyes
Saves: Rycraw (9)