Michigan
George Washington
Michigan Finishes Regular Season with Two Wins
4/17/2016 12:00:00 AM | Water Polo
» Michigan clinched the No. 1 seed for the CWPA Championships, going undefeated with a 7-0 conference record.
» Freshman Kim Johnson became the third U-M freshman to score 50 goals in a season.
» Senior Ali Thomason went over 100 points on the season with five goals and three assists against Brown.
Site: Princeton, N.J. (DeNunzio Pool)
Score: #6 Michigan 20, George Washington 2; #6 Michigan 18, Brown 3
Records: U-M (26-6, 7-0 CWPA), GW (7-15, 0-6 CWPA), Brown (9-23, 1-6 CWPA)
Next U-M Event: Fri-Sun., April 30-May 2 -- at CWPA Championships (Cambridge, Mass.)
PRINCETON, N.J. -- The No. 6-ranked University of Michigan water polo team topped George Washington and Brown on Sunday (April 17) in DeNunzio Pool to finish the regular season with a 26-6 overall record and undefeated 7-0 mark in the CWPA.
"It feels good," said head coach Dr. Marcelo Leonardi. "The team did a great job of finishing conference play and doing their job to secure our position for the CWPA Championships."
With the end in the regular season in sight, the Wolverines wanted to finish strong on Sunday to lock up the top seed in the CWPA Championships. That they did.
"Everyone really executed no matter what the time and score was," said Leonardi. "Ali (Thomason) was focused with the championships in reach, and she made sure everyone else was just as focused."
The Wolverines scored a season-high 20 goals in a 20-2 win over George Washington and followed with an 18-3 victory over Brown in the afternoon. In four games this weekend, Michigan outscored its opponents 67-20.
Michigan hit the 25-win mark for the first time since 2011. With a 21-6 record against ranked opponents this season, the Wolverines have tested their mettle. The 21 wins over ranked teams are the most in school history, well above the previous best of 14 in 2011.
Now the slate will be wiped clean, but the experience in big-game situations will be very important as Michigan enters the CWPA Championship April 29-May 1 at Harvard as the No. 1 seed.
Game 1: Michigan 20, George Washington 2
The Michigan-George Washington game had a similar result as the first meeting between the two teams when Michigan won 19-2 in early March. This time the Wolverines still held the Colonials to just two goals but also tacked on one additional goal to hit the 20-goal mark for the first time this year.
It was a big game for the U-M freshman class. Standout Kim Johnson, a Walnut Creek, California, native, led all players with five points. She scored four goals and had one assist, becoming just the third Michigan freshman to score 50 or more goals in a season. Julia Sellers posted two goals, Delaney Cleveland notched one goal and one assist, and Sami Pratt had her third career goal.
Senior Ali Thomason matched Johnson with a game-high four goals, sophomore Laura Jimenez had two goals, and junior Jamie Nolan matched her season totals with one goal and three steals in the game.
Goalkeepers Julia Campbell and Katherine Moore each played a half with Campbell drawing the start and making two saves. Moore pitched a scoreless second half with three saves.
Game 2: Michigan 18, Brown 3
With an opportunity to finish the CWPA schedule undefeated, Michigan's senior captain Thomason wasted no time taking charge of the game. Starting with a penalty shot, Thomason scored five of the team's first six goals as U-M built a 6-1 advantage into the second quarter.
Thomason did not score again after that, but she did add three assists for a season-high eight points to go with three steals. Her eight points pushed her over 100 for the season (101) as she now has 82 goals and 19 assists. She is just two goals shy of tying Shana Welch's single-season record of 84 goals.
After her brilliant performance to open the game, Thomason gave way for her teammates to finish the game off.
Jimenez, who had two earlier goals against George Washington, kept up her big day with her second hat trick of the season to go with two points for a career-high five points.
Michigan had 10 different players score a goal in the game. Junior Allison Skaggs and Cleveland each had two goals.
Just like earlier in the day, Campbell and Moore split halves. Campbell allowed one goal while making five saves to hit 200 saves on the season. Moore had two saves and two goals allowed.
Michigan will have the next two weeks off from competition as it prepares for the CWPA Championships April 29-May 1 in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
