IRVINE, Calif. – The No. 6 Sun Devil Water Polo wrapped up the Barbara Kalbus Invitational in Irvine Sunday morning, falling to No. 5 Hawaii,10-8, in the fifth-place game.
Arizona State (11-4) caps the Invitational with a 2-2 record, recording victories over No. 15 UC San Diego and tournament host No. 7 UC Irvine. The Sun Devils earned a sixth-place finish with the today's result at the 16 team tournament that featured each of the nation's Top-9 ranked teams in the CWPA poll.
In similar fashion to the first matchup with the Rainbow Wahine, the Sun Devils found themselves attempting to mount a second half comeback. Maud Koopman was outstanding for the ASU offense, recording her fifth hat trick of the season and third multi-goal game of the invitational. Also contributing offensively were Kayla Casas and Bente Rogge, who both put together multi-goal performances. Additionally, freshman Amira Van Buren scored her first career goal in the midst of the Sun Devil comeback.
The first eight minutes would be ruled by the defenses, as the game was tied at one through the first period. Kayla Casas got the ASU offense going with a goal just over a minute into the game, providing a 1-0 lead. Hawaii would remain scoreless in the period until they recorded a goal with five seconds left to even things at one.
Offense began to pick up in the second, as Maud Koopman scored a goal under a minute into the period to give the Sun Devils a 2-1 lead. Consecutive Hawaii goals were answered by Bente Rogge, as she continued her strong weekend by tying the game at three. Hawaii would score a late goal before halftime to take a 4-3 lead into the break.
After Hawaii controlled the third period, the Sun Devils found themselves in need of a rally in the fourth. That is when freshman Amira Van Buren stepped up and registered her first career goal to cut the Hawaii lead to 7-4. Bente Rogge would cut the lead back to three with her second goal of the game, coming with 5:46 left in the match. Not even a minute later, Kayla Casas tallied her second goal of the game to trim the lead to 8-6.
With the Hawaii lead back at three, Maud Koopman responded with a goal making it 9-7 Hawaii in front. She would later complete the hat trick on a penalty shot with 33 seconds left in the match, but the comeback would come up short as the Sun Devils fell to No. 5 Hawaii, 10-8.
Each of the Sun Devil's 11 wins have come against opponents currently ranked in the CWPA Top-25. All four Sun Devil losses have come against teams currently CWPA Top-5 competition by a total of six goals.
Up next, the Sun Devils will enjoy a weekend off spent preparing to host the annual ASU Invitational scheduled to take place March 10th-11th at Mona Plummer Aquatic Center. The Sun Devils take on No. 16 Indiana, No. 24 Fresno State, and 2017 NCAA Tournament participant Pomona-Pitzer. Stayed tuned as more information will be provided in the coming week. Visit our website for more updates and follow our social media accounts all season long for content.
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Goals: Koopman (3), Casas (2), Rogge (2), Van Buren
Assists: Allin (2), Casas, Koopman, Mihailovic, Rogge
Steals: Casas (3), Koopman
Saves: Rycraw (4)
Arizona State (11-4) caps the Invitational with a 2-2 record, recording victories over No. 15 UC San Diego and tournament host No. 7 UC Irvine. The Sun Devils earned a sixth-place finish with the today's result at the 16 team tournament that featured each of the nation's Top-9 ranked teams in the CWPA poll.
In similar fashion to the first matchup with the Rainbow Wahine, the Sun Devils found themselves attempting to mount a second half comeback. Maud Koopman was outstanding for the ASU offense, recording her fifth hat trick of the season and third multi-goal game of the invitational. Also contributing offensively were Kayla Casas and Bente Rogge, who both put together multi-goal performances. Additionally, freshman Amira Van Buren scored her first career goal in the midst of the Sun Devil comeback.
The first eight minutes would be ruled by the defenses, as the game was tied at one through the first period. Kayla Casas got the ASU offense going with a goal just over a minute into the game, providing a 1-0 lead. Hawaii would remain scoreless in the period until they recorded a goal with five seconds left to even things at one.
Offense began to pick up in the second, as Maud Koopman scored a goal under a minute into the period to give the Sun Devils a 2-1 lead. Consecutive Hawaii goals were answered by Bente Rogge, as she continued her strong weekend by tying the game at three. Hawaii would score a late goal before halftime to take a 4-3 lead into the break.
After Hawaii controlled the third period, the Sun Devils found themselves in need of a rally in the fourth. That is when freshman Amira Van Buren stepped up and registered her first career goal to cut the Hawaii lead to 7-4. Bente Rogge would cut the lead back to three with her second goal of the game, coming with 5:46 left in the match. Not even a minute later, Kayla Casas tallied her second goal of the game to trim the lead to 8-6.
With the Hawaii lead back at three, Maud Koopman responded with a goal making it 9-7 Hawaii in front. She would later complete the hat trick on a penalty shot with 33 seconds left in the match, but the comeback would come up short as the Sun Devils fell to No. 5 Hawaii, 10-8.
Each of the Sun Devil's 11 wins have come against opponents currently ranked in the CWPA Top-25. All four Sun Devil losses have come against teams currently CWPA Top-5 competition by a total of six goals.
Up next, the Sun Devils will enjoy a weekend off spent preparing to host the annual ASU Invitational scheduled to take place March 10th-11th at Mona Plummer Aquatic Center. The Sun Devils take on No. 16 Indiana, No. 24 Fresno State, and 2017 NCAA Tournament participant Pomona-Pitzer. Stayed tuned as more information will be provided in the coming week. Visit our website for more updates and follow our social media accounts all season long for content.
Join the conversation all season
Twitter: @SunDevilWP | Facebook: Sun Devil Water Polo | Instagram: @SunDevilWaterPolo
Goals: Koopman (3), Casas (2), Rogge (2), Van Buren
Assists: Allin (2), Casas, Koopman, Mihailovic, Rogge
Steals: Casas (3), Koopman
Saves: Rycraw (4)