Michigan
Saint Francis (Pa.)
Wolverines to Start Conference Play with Trio of Opponents
4/3/2019 4:05:00 PM | Water Polo
THIS WEEK
Saturday, April 6 -- vs. Saint Francis (Pa.) (Cambridge, Mass.), 11:30 a.m.
ESPN+
Saturday, April 6 -- vs. Brown (Cambridge, Mass.), 3:30 p.m.
ESPN+
Sunday, April 7 -- vs. No. 15 Princeton (Cambridge, Mass.), 9 a.m.
ESPN+
• Social Media: Facebook | Twitter |Instagram
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 6-ranked University of Michigan water polo team will begin conference play this weekend when the Wolverines take on three CWPA opponents at Blodgett Pool on the campus of the University of Harvard in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where they will take on Saint Francis (Pa.) and Brown on Saturday (April 6) at 11:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., respectively. On Sunday (April 7) the Wolverines will square off against No. 15-ranked Princeton at 9 a.m.
Conference Season
• The Wolverines begin conference play this weekend when they travel to Cambridge, Massachussetts, to take on Saint Francis (Pa.), Brown and Princeton at Harvard's Blodgett Pool.
• Michigan wrapped up the nonconference portion of its season with a 15-8 overall record.
• The Wolverines have a 30-2 record in the CWPA under head coach Dr. Marcelo Leonardi over his first four seasons.
• Last season Michigan outscored its conference opponents 107-52 during the regular season and 36-17 in the conference tournament.
• U-M is a combined 45-11 all-time against the three schools they are set to face this weekend.
• Under Leonardi, Michigan is 3-0 against Saint Francis, 7-0 against Brown and 6-2 vs. Princeton.
Team 19
• Michigan is 15-8 on the season and ranked No. 6 in the country.
• The Wolverines have played one of the toughest schedules in the country with six wins over top-10 teams and six of their eight losses have come against teams ranked in the top five of the polls.
• Under head coach Dr. Marcelo Leonardi, the Wolverines are 124-47 (.725) overall.
• U-M averages 10.1 goals per game this season while holding opponents to 8.7 goals per game.
• The Wolverines have won 76 percent of their sprints, led by freshman Abby Andrews who is 31-5 (86.1 percent) on sprints.
Opponents
• Saint Francis (Pa.) is 9-18 on the season and also will be starting conference play against the Wolverines. The Red Flash have an 0-12 record against ranked opponents. Michigan has won all three games in the series history by a combined score of 62-8.
• Brown is 15-9 on the season and 0-1 in the CWPA, losing to Harvard, 7-6, on March 1. The Bears will take on Bucknell earlier in the day on Saturday before facing the Wolverines. U-M has won the last 11 meetings in the series against Brown.
• Princeton has played Michigan tougher than anyone in the CWPA over the last few years, but the Wolverines have still won six of the last seven games in the series. This year, the Tigers are 16-7 overall and 2-0 in the CWPA. They have wins over Harvard (7-6 in overtime) and George Washington (14-8) in early March.
Last Time Out
• Michigan honored seniors Delaney Cleveland, Kim Johnson and Julia Sellers prior to their game against No. 22 Indiana (March 23) as part of Senior Day festivities at Canham Natatorium.
• The Wolverines cruised to a 16-8 victory. The 16 goals were three more than U-M's previous high (13) in the 56 games of the rivalry.
• The two seniors who played in the game, Johnson and Sellers, combined for five goals, two assists, four drawn exclusions, three steals and two field blocks.
• Andrews had a huge game with four goals and four assists, giving her 30 points in her last five games.
• Michigan also got three goals and two assists from both Maddy Steere and Maddy Johnston as the team posted six goals in the first quarter.Â
Milestone Watch
• Heidi Ritner is three wins shy of becoming just the second U-M goalkeeper with 75 career wins.
• Ritner is 30 saves away from 700 career saves. Only Betsey Armstrong has reached that total.
• Maddy Steere is four goals shy of the career top-10 list at Michigan, four assists away from eighth and eight points shy of ninth.
• Maddy Johnston needs four points to reach 100 for her career.
• Delaney Cleveland is four points shy of 100 for her career.
• Kim Johnson needs two goals to pass Alison Mantel for third all-time. She also is two assists away from sixth on the career list.
• Julia Sellers is seven assists shy of 100 for her career and is seven points shy of becoming the seventh U-M player with 300 career points.
• Sellers can move into fourth on the career goals list with 10 goals and is seven shy of 6th place.
