Michigan
UC Santa Barbara
Wolverines Victorious in Leonardi's Debut
1/23/2015 12:00:00 AM | Water Polo
Presley Pender
Site: Santa Barbara, Calif. (Campus Pool)
Event: UCSB Winter Invitational (Day 1)
Score: #17 Michigan 10, #14 UC Santa Barbara 8
Records: U-M (1-0), UCSB (1-1)
Next U-M Event: Saturday, Jan. 24 -- vs. San Jose State - UCSB Winter Invitational (Santa Barbara, Calif.), 1 p.m. PST
• Photo Gallery
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. -- The No. 17-ranked University of Michigan water polo team took advantage of a quick start to claim a 10-8 decision over No. 14 UC Santa Barbara on Friday afternoon (Jan. 23) in its UCSB Winter Invitational opener at Campus Pool. With the season-opening victory, the Wolverines provided first-year head coach Dr. Marcelo Leonardi his first win in his official U-M debut at the helm.
Seven different Wolverine players tallied goals in the opener, including junior Presley Pender, junior/sophomore Bryce Beckwith and junior Ali Thomason, who posted two goals apiece. Beckwith and Thomason also recorded assists, while senior Elizabeth Williams recorded a goal and two helpers.
Sophomore goalkeeper Emily Browning earned the complete-game performance, posting nine saves in the Wolverine net. She held the Gauchos to just a pair of first-half goals as U-M surged to four-goal halftime advantage.
Pender, who shared the team lead with 47 goals last season, netted the Wolverines' first two markers of 2015, including a five-meter penalty at the 6:19 mark in the opening quarter. She added another off a UCSB exclusion midway through the frame, as did freshman Caroline Anderson, who buried her first collegiate goal on a 6-on-5 with just 25 seconds remaining in the quarter.
Sophomore Allison Skaggs extended the Wolverine advantage early in the second, scoring from the post in the opening two minutes. After UCSB narrowed the score with a goal midway through the frame, Beckwith again capitalized on a late 6-on-5 opportunity to cushion U-M's halftime lead. It was Beckwith's first competitive appearance in two seasons; she redshirted last year due to injury.
The Wolverines surged again early in the third quarter, earning back-to-back goals from Beckwith and Thomason in the first 90 seconds, before UCSB netted three unanswered goals to close out the quarter.
Michigan answered, however, early in the fourth as junior Kelly Martin scored on the power play at the 7:01 mark. The team traded goals over the final four minutes of the contest, as Williams converted on another 6-on-5 and Thomason scored a five-meter penalty. In all, the Wolverines were 2-for-2 on penalty shots and 5-for-7 on power plays.
The Wolverines will resume play at the UCSB Winter Invitational tomorrow (Saturday, Jan. 24), facing No. 7 San Jose State at 1 p.m. PST and No. 4 California at 4:30 p.m. at UC Santa Barbara's Campus Pool in Santa Barbara, California.
Game Summary
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
| Michigan | 3 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 10 |
| UC Santa Barbara | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 8 |
U-M Goals: Presley Pender 2, Bryce Beckwith 2, Ali Thomason 2, Caroline Anderson, Allison Skaggs, Kelly Martin, Elizabeth Williams. UCSB Goals: Camila Schafer 3, Bryn Hudson 2, Jade Wentz Fitzgerald, Tess Wardle, Miranda Schrader. Saves: U-M 9 (Emily Browning), UCSB N/A (Mackenzie Brokaw). Ejections: U-M 12, UCSB 9.
N O T E S
• Michigan improved to 3-7 in the all-time series against UC Santa Barbara. U-M has won each of the last three meetings in the series, dating back to 2011.
• The Wolverines also improved to 11-4 all time in season openers.
• Head coach Dr. Marcelo Leonardi is the third coach in Wolverine program history. U-M is 2-1 in coaching debuts. Inaugural head coach Amber Drury-Pinto led Michigan to an 18-6 win over Villanova in the program's first intercollegiate game.
Q U O T E S
Michigan Head Coach Dr. Marcelo Leonardi
On the Wolverine win in his official debut ... "I'm super excited for the team. It's been a long time since they've played a competitive game that really meant something. I felt like I was a young kid coaching again, like 10 years ago. There is still a lot of thee unknown, testing out our system and figuring out our team chemistry and dynamics. The girls really, really put it together today. They fought hard. I scheduled this game on a day that I knew we were going to travel, and I knew we were playing at Santa Barbara in their home pool. We were able to get tested early with a solid Big West opponent. Playing good water polo against quality ranked opponents is important for us to be successful this season."
On Michigan's 6-on-5 play ... "Santa Barbara was physical today. They tried to press us, which I felt opened up opportunities in the two-meter game. We scored a couple of taking natural goals, but the game was on the 6-on-5, 5-on-6 battle. We were 4-for-7 on our 6-on-5 and were also 2-for-2 on penalty shots. If a team tries to take component of the game away, I feel that other aspects of our game have to show up. Our 5-on-6 defense showed up today."
