Michigan
Hartwick
Wolverines Fall to No. 20 Hartwick in CWPA Third-Place Game
4/26/2015 12:00:00 AM | Water Polo
Ali Thomason
Site: Princeton, N.J. (DeNunzio Pool)
Event: CWPA Championship (Third-Place Game)
Result: #20 Hartwick 11, #18 Michigan 10 (OT)
Records: U-M (19-13), HC (20-19)
Next U-M Event: Season Complete
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PRINCETON, N.J. -- The No. 18-ranked University of Michigan water polo team dropped its second straight heartbreaking overtime defeat at the CWPA Championship, falling to No. 20 Hartwick, 11-10, in the third-place contest on Sunday afternoon (April 26) at Princeton's DeNunzio Pool.
Junior Ali Thomason and freshman Caroline Anderson posted four goals and one assist apiece to headline the Wolverines' offensive efforts. Senior Elizabeth Williams and Danielle Robinson also tallied goals in their final collegiate game. Williams added two helpers, and sophomore goalkeeper Emily Browning posted six saves in the Wolverine cage.
Hartwick capitalized on an early 6-on-5 to open scoring in the first overtime frame, but the Wolverines responded quickly as Anderson buried a shot from the perimeter with the shot clock expiring less than a minute later. The score remained deadlocked after the first overtime.
Robinson scored on a slick cross-cage skip shot to give U-M an early lead in the second, but Hartwick evened the score on a five-meter penalty before taking the lead with just 36 seconds remaining on a two-meter goal on a Hawk timeout play.
The score was tied for a good majority of the game -- after the first and second quarters. Michigan struck first on a perimeter shot from Thomason at the 6:02 mark, before a flurry of goals late in the first quarter. Hartwick scored on a five-meter penalty and again in the final minute, while Thomason added her second on a short-side skip on a later counter attack.
Hartwick took its first lead with a tip goal early in the second, but U-M responded quickly as Thomason completed her hat trick on a subsequent counterattack.
Thomason netted her fourth goal on another counter attack early in the third, and Anderson followed with a pair of goals -- a short-side shot and on a cross-cage lob -- late in the frame and another cross-cage attempt to complete her hat trick and push the Wolverines' lead to 7-5 early in the fourth. Despite another Thomason five-meter penalty, Hartwick netted two on the 6-on-5 to even the score late in the fourth and force overtime.
Game Summary
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | OT | F |
| Michigan (19-13) | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| Hartwick (20-19) | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 11 |
U-M Goals: Ali Thomason 4, Caroline Anderson 4, Elizabeth Williams, Danielle Robinson. HC Goals: Blanca Anton Cuesta 6, Nikolina Mihaljovik 2, Zsofia Polak, Katie McKenty, Brittany Tait. Saves: U-M 6 (Emily Browning), HC 10 (Michaela Davies). Ejections: U-M 14, HC 9.
