Michigan
Southern Cal
Wolverines Drop First Two Contests at Anteater Invitational
2/23/2008 12:00:00 AM | Water Polo
Site:Irvine, Calif.(Anteater Pool)
Event: UC Irvine Anteater Invitational (Day 1)
Scores: #3 Southern Cal 15, #15 Michigan 7; #6 San Diego State 11, #15 Michigan 9
Records: U-M (6-9)
Next U-M Event: Sunday, Feb.24 -- atAnteater Invitational(Irvine, Calif.)
IRVINE, Calif. -- The No. 15-ranked University of Michigan water polo team dropped both of its matches Saturday (Feb. 23) during the first day of UC Irvine's Anteater Invitational. The Wolverines fell 15-7 to No. 3 Southern Cal in the opener and lost 11-9 to No. 6 San Diego State in the evening game.
Sophomore Leah Robertson(Newport Beach, Calif./Newport Harbor) posted six goals for the Maize and Blue, while freshman Alison Mantel(Miami, Fla./Gulliver) and junior Sharayah Hernandez(Pico Rivera, Calif./El Rancho) had three goals each.
Junior Brittany May(Santa Barbara, Calif./Santa Barbara) made eight saves on the day, minding the cage for a majority of the two games. Sophomore Kimberly Gero(Mission Viejo, Calif./Mission Viejo) had two saves in limited duty.
The Wolverines jumped on SDSU early, generating breakaways but failing to convert them into goals. The Aztecs responded by maintaining a two-point cushion for much of the game to hold off the Wolverines in the first game of the consolation bracket. Michigan threatened to erase an 11-8 defecit late in the fourth frame but had three straight attempts turned aside before scoring on its last possession with 12 seconds remaining.
In the opener against USC, the two teams battled through a flurry of goals in the first period. Each team found the back of the cage five times in the opening frame, leading to eventual personnel changes in each team's net. The Maize and Blue stuck close, tying the game at 5:54 in the second stanza before a bevy of kickouts forced the Wolverines to spend much of their time in a five-man defense.
Trailing by a 9-6 margin, the Wolverines looked to come out of the gate and strike quickly. After an early USC marker, Michigan responded to keep the game in hand. USC then opened up the flood gates and scored five straight goals to put the game out of reach.
Michigan will play UC San Diego Sunday (Feb. 24) at 11:45 p.m. PST at Corona Del Mar High School. The winner of that contest will face the winner of No. 13 UC Santa Barbara and 17 Cal State Northridge in the 13th-place game at 4 p.m., while the losers of those matches will play for 15th place at 5:15 p.m.
Game Summaries
| Game 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F | ||||
| #15 Michigan | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 7 | ||||
| #3 USC | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 15 |
| Game 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F | ||||
| #15 Michigan | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 9 | ||||
| #6 San Diego State | 2 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 11 |
Contact: Ryan Sosin (734) 763-4423
