Michigan
Marist
Perfect Weekend Delivers Michigan's 300th All-Time Victory
3/13/2011 12:00:00 AM | Water Polo
March 13, 2011
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Canham Natatorium)
Event: Wolverine Invitational
Scores: #7 Michigan 12, Marist 5; #7 Michigan 10, Iona 6
Records: U-M (19-4), Marist (7-11), Iona (11-4)
Next U-M Event: Saturday, March 26 -- at Indiana (Bloomington, Ind.), 2 p.m. (TV: Big Ten Network)
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 7-ranked University of Michigan water polo team became the first program in the modern era to reach 300 wins, defeating Marist, 12-5, and Iona, 10-6, during day-two action of the Wolverine Invitational on Sunday (March 13) inside Canham Natatorium.
Junior Meagan Cobb (Hudsonville, Mich./Hudsonville) scored five goals on the day and senior Alison Mantel (Miami, Fla./Gulliver) tallied four times and chipped in two assists in the victories. Sophomore Alex Adamson (Coronado, Calif./Coronado) made nine saves against the Iona Gaels and was the goalie of record in both contests.
Michigan learned quickly that Iona was not going to be a willing participant in history. The Gaels took a 1-0 first-period lead and hung with the Wolverines, leading 5-4 heading into the final two minutes of the first half. Cobb knotted up the game from two meters before a last-second floater from Mantel gave U-M a 6-5 lead at the break.
U-M's offense continued to rattle off goals with senior Lauren Orth (Poway, Calif./Poway) putting home a rebound early in the third frame to give U-M all the markers it would need. Just over a minute later, Orth found senior Sarah Roberts (Costa Mesa, Calif./Newport Harbor) on a cross-cage pass to extend the Maize and Blue lead to 8-5. Sophomore Lauren Colton (Tustin, Calif./Tesoro) and senior Ryley Plunkett (Modesto, Calif./Johansen) dented the twine to cap Michigan's six-goal string. Iona scored the lone goal in the fourth period, but the Wolverines had all they needed to cross the 300-win threshold.
The Wolverines and Red Foxes traded goals through the first nine minutes of the day's first game before Cobb sparked an 8-0 run for the Maize and Blue that carried into the fourth period. Cobb scored four times in the contest, while Colton and Mantel chipped in a pair each.
Michigan will make its second national television appearance of the year when it takes on Indiana on Saturday, March 26, at 2 p.m. in Bloomington, Ind. The rivalry game will be aired live on the Big Ten Network.
GAME SUMMARIES
| By Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
| Marist | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
| MICHIGAN | 2 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 12 |
U-M Goals: Meagan Cobb 4, Lauren Colton 2, Alison Mantel 2, Kelsey Nolan, Lauren Dudley, Ryanne O'Donnell, Sarah Roberts.
Saves: Marist 14 (Kaityln Gary), U-M 6 (Alex Adamson 3; Morgan Turner 1; Tara Brigham 2)
Ejections: Marist 7, U-M 10
| By Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
| Iona | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| MICHIGAN | 0 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 10 |
U-M Goals: Alison Mantel 2, Lauren Colton 2, Cara Reitz, Meagan Cobb, Keller Felt, Sarah Roberts, Lauren Orth, Ryley Plunkett.
Saves: Iona 6 (Juliana Kiesselbach), U-M 9 (Alex Adamson)
Ejections: Iona 6, U-M 5
N O T E S
• Michigan became the first program in the modern era to reach 300 victories with its victory over Iona. The Maize and Blue reached the milestone with a record of 300-117-1 over 10-plus seasons. The modern era of water polo began in 2001 with the establishment of an NCAA-sanctioned championship.
• Lauren Orth extended her team-best point streak to 29 games with three assists on the day. Orth has 41 goals and 30 assists during her current streak, the third longest in program history.
• With her goal against Iona, Meagan Cobb became the 14th player in program history to score 100 times in her career. Cobb joins teammates Cara Reitz, Alison Mantel and Lauren Orth in the club.
Q U O T E S
Michigan Head Coach Matt Anderson
On the long weekend ... "Seven games in a span of three days is tough, no matter who the competition is. When you set it up so a team (like Iona) that is expected to win their conference and make it to NCAAs is your last opponent, you are really asking the girls to dig deep. I felt conditioning-wise we were able to do it and we still had the mental focus to do it. It was good. It was good that, in our final game, we were pushed. That should make us more focused for training going into Indiana in two weeks."
On the program's 300th win ... "It is outstanding. To be the winningest program in NCAA history so far -- in 11 years -- is something to be proud of. Regardless of the sport, to say that you are currently at the top of the list means you are doing something right. We want Michigan to be out there in the forefront and the girls want to be recognized for setting the levels, and this senior class has been part of 200, 250 and 300 (wins)."
U-M Senior Alison Mantel
On the 300th victory ... "It is pretty exciting. For our senior class, we have had a great four years. So it is awesome to have that milestone under our reign."
Contact: Ryan Sosin (734) 763-4423
