Michigan
UCLA
Michigan Unable to Trump No. 3 UCLA in NCAA Quarterfinals
5/8/2009 12:00:00 AM | Water Polo
Site: College Park, Md. (Eppley Recreation Center Natatorium)
Event: NCAA Championship (Quarterfinals)
Scores: #3 UCLA 13, #11 Michigan 6
Record: U-M (33-9); UCLA (23-6)
Attendance: 470
Next U-M Event: Saturday, May 9 -- vs. Marist at NCAA Championship (College Park, Md.), 12:30 p.m.
Notes & Quotes|Photo Gallery
COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- The No. 11-ranked University of Michigan water polo team came up short against three-time defending national champion and No. 3-ranked UCLA, falling 13-6 in the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Championship on Friday afternoon (May 8) at Maryland's Eppley Recreation Center Natatorium. The Maize and Blue will move into the consolation bracket to face Marist tomorrow (Saturday, May 9) at 12:30 p.m.
Sophomore Lauren Orth(Poway, Calif./Poway) scored twice on five-meter penalty shots to lead the Wolverine offense, while sophomore Alison Mantel(Miami, Fla./Gulliver) tallied a goal and two assists to go with a team-high two steals. Senior/junior Brittany May(Santa Barbara, Calif./Santa Barbara) turned aside five shots during a busy afternoon in the cage.
Special teams were pivotal as UCLA converted six times on the power play and the Wolverines converted two penalty shots and netted two power-play markers. After Mantel registered a steal and senior Julie Hyrne(Sunnyvale, Calif./Archbishop Mitty) hit a post on the first trip to either end of the pool, the stage was set for a physical battle in both ends. UCLA began to apply the pressure and converted on a pair of power plays to go up 2-0 just past the halfway point of the opening frame. May came up with a stop on a two-on-one attempt, climbing the ladder to stymie the rush. The Bruins continued to apply pressure and scored twice more before U-M found an answer. With 17 seconds left in the frame, Michigan worked the ball around the perimeter until a pass from Hyrne found senior Carrie Frost(Saline, Mich./Saline) all alone on the far side of the net, where she easily scored. The momentum was short lived, however, as UCLA scored the first of its three buzzer-beaters to carry a 5-1 advantage over the Maize and Blue into the second period.
The physicality picked up in the second period with fierce battles taking place at two meters. UCLA capitalized first, scoring 3:51 into the frame on a swing shot from the set position. Robertson drew her first five-meter penalty under a minute later while in a battle in front of the Bruins net. Orth was summoned to take the shot and skipped a ball off the water and in to pull U-M to within a 6-2 margin. The Bruins responded with a power-play score 2:36 before the break, skipping in a shot from the right side. Sophomore Cara Reitz(Miami, Fla./Gulliver) answered with 25 seconds remaining, denting the twine as she carried a defender on her back inside five meters. After trading a pair of goals each in the frame, U-M found itself on the short end of a 7-3 contest at halftime.
Both teams buckled down on defense after the break, going back and forth down the pool for more than four minutes. UCLA finally broke through, taking advantage of a rebound off the crossbar to pull ahead, 8-3, 5:36 into the period. It was not until the final 15 seconds that either team scored again, with each taking a swipe at the opposition's goal. Robertson slinked around a Bruin defender and slammed a ball inside the near post from the left side with 15 seconds left for the Wolverines' fourth goal of the contest. UCLA once again converted on a buzzer-beater to claim a 9-4 lead.
Michigan came out firing to start the fourth and it paid off with a goal 42 seconds into the stanza. Robertson once again drew a penalty toss and Orth was up to the task, scoring with a low shot to pull the Wolverines to within four. The Maize and Blue continued to press at both ends of the pool and got a field block from Hyrne to terminate a UCLA power play, and a steal in front by junior Casie Kelly(Longwood, Fla./Lake Brantley) kept the Bruins at bay during the first four minutes of the final stanza. Just past the halfway point, UCLA got a goal on a counter attack to double up U-M, 10-5. Michigan answered on its next trip down the pool when Mantel scored a power-play marker at 4:21. Frost worked the ball around the outside, trying to find a shot, and sent it to the U-M sophomore, who sniped the shot into the back of the cage. U-M continued to apply pressure on the Bruins, but three power-play scores by UCLA in the final three minutes proved too much to overcome.
The Wolverines will now take on Marist on Saturday (May 9) in the consolation semifinal round of the NCAA Championship at Maryland's Eppley Recreation Center Natatorium. Opening sprint is slated for 12:30 p.m.
GAME SUMMARY
| By Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
| Michigan | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 6 |
| UCLA | 5 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 13 |
U-M Goals: Lauren Orth 2, Alison Mantel, Carrie Frost, Leah Robertson, Cara Reitz.
UCLA Goals: Anne Belden 3, Tanya Gandy 2, Katie Rulon 2, KK Clark 2, Nicole Barker, Hannah Sebenaler, Priscilla Orozco, Kelly Easterday.
Saves: U-M 5 (Brittany May), UCLA 10 (Brittany Fullen)
Ejections: U-M 10, UCLA 9
N O T E S
The Wolverines fall to 2-7 all-time at the NCAA Championship.
Michigan drops to 0-4 all-time against UCLA.
The Maize and Blue's winning streak comes to an end at 25 games dating back to Feb. 28. The string is the second-longest in program history behind last season's 27-game span.
With two points today, senior Carrie Frost moved into a tie for second amongst Wolverine scorers at the NCAA Championship. Frost has five goals and two assists for seven points, matching senior Sharayah Hernandez's career output at the national tournament. Sheetal Narsai (2002-05) is the program's top scorer at the NCAA Championship with eight points.
Sophomore Alison Mantel extended her point streak to 16 games with a goal and two assists today. During the span, she has tallied 28 goals and 19 assists.
Senior Julie Hyrne extended her point streak to 13 games with an assist today. She has 23 goals and nine assists during the string.
Sophomore Lauren Orth has scored in each of the last four games, netting seven goals during that time.
Q U O T E S
Michigan Head Coach Matt Anderson
Opening statement... "It was a solid game. That was a hard-played, aggressive fight. They got three goals as the buzzer was sounding, at the end of the first, at the end of the second, and at the end of the fourth. They got two goals on the goal line that we didn't clear out that they pushed in. But, we did a lot of positives out there. Unfortunately, we allowed them to do a lot of things that we knew they were going to do. When it was 9-6, we had a breakaway, one-on-nobody that we missed. At 10-6, we have a 6-on-5 that we missed. Unfortunately, the last three periods we definitely were able to do what we wanted, but we allowed them to get out in the first period. That's why they are going for their fifth national championship."
On the play of U-M's defense... "Leah Robertson dominated out there -- they could not stop her, which is very good for us. But then we could not stop the bad breaks; the three shots when the clock is going off and a couple on the goal line. When you're an elite program like UCLA, those things go your way. They proved that they're the better team today, but I have no complaints losing to a team like that with the effort we had."
U-M Senior Driver Sharayah Hernandez
On the game... "Once we started pressing on defense and doing what Matt [Anderson] told us to do, which was press the five to shut them down, they didn't have anything. Even though they scored, we gave them a hard time. There was a length of time without anyone scoring because we were playing really good defense and they were playing really good defense. But when they scored and they started to break away was when we got away from our defense."
Contact: Ryan Sosin (734) 763-4423
