Michigan
Arizona State
Michigan's Season Ends at Hands of No. 4 Arizona State in NCAA Quarterfinals
5/14/2021 7:29:00 PM | Water Polo
» No. 5 Michigan ended its season with a 9-5 loss to No. 4 Arizona State in the NCAA Tournament.
» A 4-0 run by the Sun Devils in the second quarter was the turning point in the game.
» U-M finished the year with a 21-5 overall record.
Site: Los Angeles, Calif. (Spieker Aquatics Center)
Event: NCAA Tournament (Quarterfinals)
Score: #4 Arizona State 9, #7 Michigan 5
Records: U-M (21-5), ASU (14-11)
Next U-M Event: Season Completed
• PDF Boxscore
LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- Despite a fourth-quarter comeback, the No. 5-seeded University of Michigan water polo team never recovered from its early deficit, falling 9-5 against No. 4 seed Arizona State on Friday (May 14) in the NCAA quarterfinals at the Spieker Aquatics Center. The loss ended the Wolverines' season.
U-M scored the game's first goal thanks to a breakaway from senior Maddie O'Reilly on a perfect feed from senior Kathy Rogers. The first quarter saw the two sides play even, 1-1, but ASU took control of the game in the second.
The Sun Devils scored four unanswered goals in the second quarter to distance themselves from the Wolverines, and added the first two goals of the second half to build a 6-1 lead.
U-M started to chip away at the deficit with a pair of goals from freshman Libby Alsemgeest that were both assisted by junior Ava Morrant, but Arizona State did just enough to keep its distance, leading 9-3 at the end of the third.
The Wolverines bounced back in the final stanza, as O'Reilly notched her second goal of the game off an assist from freshman Kata Utassy, and graduate student Emily Byrne cut the deficit to four with an assist from sophomore Anne Rankin, but Michigan ran out of time.
Michigan finishes its season with a 21-5 overall record, a 6-0 Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) record and won the CWPA championship at Canham Natatorium -- its fifth consecutive conference title and 10th in program history.
