Two Wins Put Michigan in Division Championship Game

Saturday, April 22

Bloomington, Ind.

12:45 PM

Michigan

Washington & Jefferson

4/22/2006 12:00:00 AM | Water Polo

Site: Bloomington, Ind. (Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatic Center)
Event: Western Division Championship
Scores: #17 Michigan 16, Washington & Jefferson 1; #17 Michigan 19, Mercyhurst 6
Records: U-M (26-11)
Next U-M Event: Sunday, April 23 -- at Indiana in Western Division Championship (Bloomington, Ind.), Noon

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- With wins over Washington & Jefferson in the quarterfinals and Mercyhurst in the semifinals Saturday (April 22), the No. 17-ranked University of Michigan women's water polo team advanced to the Western Division Championship final at Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatic Center. Michigan is set to face Indiana in the final tomorrow (Sunday, April 23) at noon.

Kristin Hoogenboom (Portland, Ore./Sunset) tied the single-game school steals record with eight and Mary Chatigny (Palm Springs, Calif./Palm Springs) scored four times in the victory over the W&J Presidents. Michigan generated its highest offensive output of the season in the semifinal game against Mercyhurst in a 19-6 win. Shana Welch (Larksville, Pa./Wyoming West Valley) recorded a team-high six steals to go along with her hat trick in the victory.

In the Wolverines' quarterfinal match against Washington & Jefferson, U-M controlled the game from the outset as Welch scored four times and Carly Strub (Annapolis, Md./Broadneck) and Julie Hyrne (Sunnyvale, Calif./Archbishop Mitty) each netted a goal to give Michigan a commanding 6-0 advantage at the end of the first period. The Wolverines used a vicious counterattack to set up each score.

Hoogenboom sent Carrie Frost (Saline, Mich./Saline) for a breakaway score to begin the second quarter. Strub tallied her second minutes later. Sharayah Hernandez (Pico Rivera, Calif./El Rancho) then snuck behind the W&J defense and Kristen Davis (Villa Park, Calif./Villa Park) found her for a breakaway marker to put Michigan up 9-0. Michelle Keeley (Rockford, Mich./Rockford) finished the first-half scoring on a feed from Hernandez out of the hole set and Michigan led 10-0 to end the half.

The Presidents finally got on the board four minutes into the third on a 6-on-5 advantage, but Kelsey Haley (Portola Valley, Calif./Menlo) earned back Michigan's 10-goal lead on a breakaway from Chatigny a minute later.

Michigan scored five more times in the fourth period while also shutting out W&J in the final frame. After Hernandez completed the hat trick on the counterattack, Chatigny reeled off the final four goals in a three-minute span. Two of Chatigny's goals were aided by Lorraine Negron (Erie, Pa./McDowell) counterattack passes. The Wolverines advanced to the semifinals with the 16-1 victory and faced Mercyhurst in the day's second contest.

Michigan fell behind quickly, 2-0, against Mercyhurst, but four unanswered goals erased the deficit. Welch took a pass from Megan Hausmann (San Diego, Calif./Bishop's) and scored on a counterattack to get U-M on the board. Welch followed with another tally, this time on a power play assisted by Strub. Michigan added five more before the first-period buzzer and entered the second up 7-3.

Swift passing in the half court earned U-M's eighth goal of the contest as Hoogenboom fed Hernandez for the score early in the second. Five different Wolverines scored the next five goals to help build a 13-4 halftime lead.

More nifty passing earned the Wolverines three more goals in the third period. The offensive highlight of the period came on an alley-oop pass from Haley Mullins (Orinda, Calif./Miramonte) to Frost. Mullins also assisted on the first goal of the period when she fed Keeley in the two meter. Haley completed the third-period scoring on shot from beyond four meters to move the lead to 16-5.

The seniors were the story of the fourth as Hausmann scored twice out of two meters to build Michigan's lead to 18-5. Hoogenboom answered Mercyhurst's sixth goal as she sunk one into the floating canvas and the Wolverines came out victors, 19-6.

GAME SUMMARIES