Michigan
Wagner
U-M Beats Wagner, Cal Baptist at Pomona Tournament
3/20/2004 12:00:00 AM | Water Polo
Site: Pomona, Calif. (Haldeman Pool)
Event: Pomona Tournament
Scores: #8 Michigan 12, Wagner 5; #8 Michigan 6, Cal Baptist 3.
Records: U-M (17-7)
Next U-M Event: Sunday, March 21 -- vs. Santa Clara (10:30 a.m. PST), at Pomona-Pitzer (2:15 p.m. PST) in Pomona Invitational (Pomona, Calif.)
POMONA, Calif. -- The eighth-ranked University of Michigan women's water polo team tallied a pair of victories today (Saturday, March 20) in the first day of the Pomona Tournament. The Wolverines earned a 12-5 victory over Wagner in the first game of the tournament and defeated No. 19 Cal Baptist 6-3 in the afternoon session. Both games were held at Pomona's Haldeman Pool.
Shana Welch (Larksville, Pa./Wyoming Valley West HS) led the Maize and Blue with six goals over the two games, including four against Wagner. Goalkeeper Betsey Armstrong (Ann Arbor, Mich./Huron HS) posted 13 saves against Wagner and had 15 more against the Lancers, totaling 28 saves on the day.
The Wolverines got off to a fast start against Wagner, scoring the first goal of the game to take a 1-0 lead. Armstrong found Welch on the counterattack and Welch converted on the one-on-none opportunity. Wagner, however, answered on the ensuing possession with a cross-pool shot to knot the score at 1-1 with 3:59 to go in the first period. U-M responded with three goals over the remainder of the period to open up a 4-1 advantage. Julie Nisbet (Santa Barbara, Calif./Santa Barbara HS) scored back-to-back goals on a rebound score and a tip-in from two meters out. Welch capped off the scoring run with a power-play marker from Megan Hausmann (San Diego, Calif./Bishop's HS) as time ran out on the frame.
In the second quarter, Michigan increased its lead to 5-1 with a six-on-five goal from Stephanie Rupp (Hemet, Calif./Hemet HS) at the 4:13 mark. U-M maintained its four-goal lead for the next two minutes until Wagner was able to cut the lead back down to three. The Seahawks scored a fast-break goal after a successful counterattack to make the score 5-2 at the half.
The second half started with Welch completing her hat trick with a power-play goal at the 6:12 mark of the third period. Wagner answered on the ensuing possession to make the score 6-3, but off the restart Hausmann found Welch cutting to the goal for her fourth score of the game. Welch beat her defender to the net and skipped the ball across the cage to give the Wolverines a 7-3 advantage. That score sparked a three-goal run by the Maize and Blue that opened up a 10-3 lead. Sheetal Narsai (Commerce, Calif./Bell Gardens HS) started the run with a rebound goal at 3:42 followed by a tip-in score from Meg Knudtsen (Los Altos, Calif./St. Francis HS) and a counterattack goal by Melissa Goldberg (Annapolis, Md./Annapolis HS). Wagner was able to get one more score before the end of the third quarter, making the count 10-4 heading into the final period.
Ashley McCullum (Poway, Calif./Poway HS) made the score 11-4 with 5:45 to go in the game with a shot from six meters out. With just over two minutes to play, a Wagner marker brought the Seahawks within six, but U-M scored on its next possession to seal the victory. Rupp found Wesley Ellison (Portola Valley, Calif./Palo Alto HS) in front of the net for the last goal of the game.
Against the Lancers of Cal Baptist, Michigan opened up a four-goal lead after one period of play. As in the earlier game, Welch scored the first goal for the Wolverines. After Michigan missed its first shot of the game, Nisbet rebounded the ball and found Welch for the shot from four meters out. U-M increased its lead to 2-0 at the 4:34 mark with a lob shot from Narsai that found the back of the net. Ninety-five seconds later, Welch struck again. This time Narsai received a pass up the pool on the counterattack and found Welch on a crossing pass for the goal. Narsai then capped the scoring run with her second marker on a backhanded shot out of the hole set. At the end of the first quarter, Michigan held a 4-0 lead.
Cal Baptist began to counterattack Michigan in the second quarter, earning a four-meter penalty with 4:44 to go in the period. However, Armstrong was up to the task, blocking the attempt and preserving U-M's four-goal lead. Hausmann scored the only goal of the period with less than one minute to go until halftime to give the Wolverines a 5-0 advantage. Jo Antonsen (Agoura Hills, Calif./Agoura HS) found Hausmann on a crossing pass and the sophomore lobbed the shot back across the net for the goal.
Michigan continued to dominate the play in the third quarter, taking a 6-0 advantage with 3:52 on the clock. This time, Nisbet did the honors for the Wolverines, scoring on a counterattack, one-on-none opportunity. However, Cal Baptist would not go away, responding with a three-goal run spanning into the fourth quarter. The first goal came with 2:47 to go in the third quarter off a rebound and the second with just three seconds on the clock on a counterattack. Heading into the fourth period, Michigan's lead was cut to 6-2.
The Lancers completed their run with a third marker with 6:05 to play to make the score 6-3, but neither team was able to score for the remainder of the game.
Michigan (17-7) returns to the pool tomorrow (March 21) for the second day of competition in the Pomona Tournament. The Wolverines will start the day with a match against Santa Clara at 10:30 a.m. PST.
GAME SUMMARIES
| Game 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
| Wagner | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 |
| Michigan | 4 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 12 |
Scoring
Wagner Goals: Courtney Crase, Briana D'Esposito, Megan Garrett, Stacey Travous, Jamiee Binder. Michigan Goals: Shana Welch 4, Julie Nisbet 2, Wesley Ellison, Melissa Goldberg, Sheetal Narsai, Ashley McCullum, Stepanie Rupp, Meg Knudtsen.. Ejections: Wagner 6, Michigan 10.
| Game 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
| Cal Baptist | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Michigan | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 |
Scoring
Cal Baptist Goals: Cherly Ogden, Tawni Covington, Megan Eldredge. Michigan Goals: Shana Welch 2, Sheetal Narsai 2, Julie Nisbet, Megan Hausmann. Ejections: Cal Baptist 2, Michigan 2.
Contact: Paul Dickerson (734) 763-4423
