Michigan Earns Split on Second Day of Anteater Invite

Sunday, February 22

Newport Beach, Calif.

11:45 AM PT

Michigan

UC San Diego

Michigan Earns Split on Second Day of Anteater Invite

2/22/2009 12:00:00 AM | Water Polo

Site: Newport Beach, Calif. (Corona del Mar High School Pool)
Event: Anteater Invitational
Scores: #11 Michigan 7, #16 UC San Diego 3; #19 UC Santa Barbara 7, #11 Michigan 4
Record: U-M (8-7); UC San Diego (3-6); UC Santa Barbara (6-5)
Next U-M Event: Sat-Sun., Feb. 28-March 1 -- at Eastern Elite 6 Invitational (Lewisburg, Pa.)

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. -- The No. 11-ranked University of Michigan water polo team split its day-two contests of the Anteater Invitational, finishing in 14th place following a 7-3 victory over No. 16-ranked UC San Diego and a 7-4 loss to No. 19-ranked UC Santa Barbara on Sunday (Feb. 22) at the Corona del Mar High School pool.

Sophomore Alison Mantel(Miami, Fla./Gulliver) recorded her fourth hat trick of the season against UC San Diego and added another goal in the evening session. Fellow sophomore Cara Reitz(Miami, Fla./Gulliver) had four goals and two helpers on the day, while senior/junior goalkeeper Brittany May(Santa Barbara, Calif./Santa Barbara) made 18 saves in a busy day in the cage.

The opening game of the day was a low-scoring affair with the two teams tallying one first-half goal each. It looked as though neither team would get on the board in the first stanza with both goalies stopping a penalty shot as part of three-save stanzas, but with 36 seconds left in the first period, Mantel was able to find the back of the cage, giving the Maize and Blue a 1-0 edge. The lead lasted through much of the second period until UCSD's Stephanie Bocian knotted the game at 1-1 with 3:34 left in the opening half.

The second half saw three lead changes before the scoreboard fell into Michigan's favor. Junior Leah Robertson(Newport Beach, Calif./Newport Harbor) scored to give U-M a 2-1 lead 3:40 into the third period, but it only lasted for 30 seconds before the Tritons got the equalizer. UC San Diego took its lone lead of the day with just under two minutes left, scoring on a 6-on-5 following a timeout. Reitz then leveled the score before the period break, reaching the back of the cage with 30 seconds remaining in the frame.

Reitz got what proved to be the gamewinner 2:11 into the fourth quarter on a cross pass from senior Kelsey Haley(Portola Valley, Calif./Menlo) that she ripped inside the far bar. Following a string of unsuccessful power plays for both teams, the Wolverines got a bit of a pad at 5:19, getting a goal from sophomore Lauren Orth(Poway, Calif./Poway) on a five-meter penalty shot. Mantel did not allow Michigan to settle on the 5-3 lead for long, scoring twice within a minute to deliver a comfortable 7-3 lead that lasted until the final horn.

Michigan generated a pair of first-half leads against UC Santa Barbara but, after killing off only three of nine shorthanded situations, the Wolverines found themselves on the losing end of the score. Robertson scored the lone marker of the first period, putting Michigan up 1-0 just before the midway point. After UC Santa Barbara tied the game, Reitz was called upon to take a five-meter shot that senior Mary Chatigny (Palm Springs, Calif./Palm Springs) drew. Reitz successful converted on the goal to give U-M a 2-1 lead with 4:25 left in the period. It took only 24 seconds for the Gauchos to convert a 6-on-5 opportunity into a 2-2 tie that carried into the break.

Under three minutes after halftime, UCSB got its first lead of the day, scoring at 5:17 to go up 3-2. Mantel had Michigan's response, denting the twine less than a minute later. The flurry continued with UC Santa Barbara taking a lead for good on a power-play goal at 3:52. With the Wolverines still well within striking distance, UCSB rattled off three power-play scores in the final frame. Reitz's 6-on-5 goal 2:40 into the period was U-M's lone tally of the period.

The Wolverines will next cross the continent for the fourth time this season, heading to the Eastern Elite 6 tournament this Saturday and Sunday (Feb. 28-March 1) in Lewisburg, Pa. The annual tournament hosts the six teams from the preceding year's Eastern Championship. Michigan will open with the teamit beat in the 2008 Eastern Championship finals, Hartwick, at 9:45 a.m.before taking onMaryland at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday.

GAME SUMMARIES

Game 1	1	2	3	4	F
Michigan	1	0	2	4	7
UC San Diego	0	1	2	0	3

UCSD Goals: Jessica Tran 2, Stephanie Bocian.
U-M Goals: Alison Mantel 3, Cara Reitz 2, Lauren Orth, Leah Robertson.
Saves: UCSD 7 (Markayla Quane); U-M 10 (Brittany May)

Game 2	1	2	3	4	F
Michigan	1	1	1	1	4
UC Santa Barbara	0	2	2	3	7

UCSB Goals: Gillian Morgan 2, Claire Buchanan 2, Lizzie Rouleau, Alisha Khan, Cailee Kilroy.
U-M Goals: Cara Reitz 2, Alison Mantel, Leah Robertson.
Saves: UCSB 9 (Chelsea Carillo); U-M 8 (Brittany May)

N O T E S

Sophomore Cara Reitz matched a career high with four points on two goals and a personal-best two assists against UC San Diego. Reitz now has four four-point games and a trio of two-assist contests in her career.

Senior Carrie Frost moved into sole possession of eighth place on the U-M career games-played list with 136 appearances. She began the day tied with Betsey Armstrong (134, 2002-05) and Jo Antonsen (134, 2002-05).

Michigan improved to 8-6 all-time against UC San Diego but remains winless in seven tries against UC Santa Barbara.

Senior Kelsey Haley notched her 100th career point against UC San Diego. She has 23 goals and 77 assists in her career.

Q U O T E S

Michigan Head Coach Matt Anderson
On the team's performance today... "We played well this morning. We were playing good defense, we played solid offense and we made the shots we should have made. This evening, we had many makeable shots that we did not make. It was not a case of the goalie blocking them; we just were either missing or hitting the bar. We played well enough to win tonight, but when you go 1-for-11 on your power play, and you miss as many shots as we did, you really are not going to beat anybody at that point. Overall, we did a very nice job this tournament offensively. I am very happy with how we were getting the ejections and getting shots on cage. We have just got to get better at putting the ball in the back of the net. Now that we know what our main focus is, it will help as we move through the rest of the season."