Michigan
Fresno State (ex)
Wolverines Place 10th at Collegiate Cup
11/5/2017 7:45:00 PM | Water Polo
» Michigan won three of its five games on the weekend
» Maddy Johnston had seven points against Fresno State
» Wolverines open the 2018 season Jan. 20-21 in Santa Barbara
Site: Fresno, Calif.
Event: USA Water Polo Collegiate Cup
Score: Game 1 - Michigan 16, Fresno State 3; Game 2 - USA1 8, Michigan 5
Next U-M Event: Jan. 20-21 - UCSB Invitational in Santa Barbara, Calif.
FRESNO, Calif. -- The University of Michigan water polo team placed 10th at the USA Water Polo Collegiate Cup on Sunday (Nov. 5), finishing with a 3-2 record on the weekend.
The Wolverines bounced back from a one-goal defeat against Hawai'i to win three straight games. That set up a matchup in the 9th-place game with members from the USA Water Polo pipeline, USA1.
Michigan will be able to take away a lot of positives from the weekend as they go back to eight-hour weeks until after the new year when they will begin training for the 2018 season.
Game 1: Michigan 16, Fresno State 3
The Wolverines started the day with the 9th-12th semifinal against Fresno State. Prior to the game head coach Dr. Marcelo Leonardi was able to catch up with former U-M assistant coach Caitlin Haskell, who has helped in building the Bulldogs into a new NCAA program for 2018.
After playing three games on Saturday, nobody would have been surprised if the teams came out sluggish, but it was the opposite for Michigan.
U-M scored the first seven goals of the game, shutting out the Bulldogs into the second quarter. Six of those goals came in the first period with senior Caroline Anderson and junior Kim Johnson each scoring twice in the opening period.
Both teams scored two goals in the second quarter to make the score 8-2 at halftime. Junior Julia Sellers led the way for Michigan in the third period with two of her four goals in the game. U-M outscored the Bulldogs 4-1 in the period to open the lead even further at 12-3.
Freshman Maddy Johnston continued to pour in the goals after a big day on Saturday. She scored twice in the fourth to give her four goals in the game and 11 on the weekend. U-M shut out Fresno State in the fourth quarter to win, 16-3.
Johnston led the way with seven points in the game, while Sellers was close behind with six points.
U-M Goals: Johnston (4), Sellers (4), Anderson (2), Johnson (2), Cleveland, O'Beck, E. Ritner, Steere
U-M Assists: Johnston (3), Cordial (2), Sellers (2), Steere (2), Anderson, Corbett, Jimenez, O'Reilly, H. Ritner
U-M Saves: H. Ritner (3) Cordial (3)
Tweet of the Game
Final! We have won three of our four games this weekend. #GoBlue
— Michigan Water Polo (@UMichWaterPolo) November 5, 2017
U-M Goal leaders: Sellers (4), Johnston (4) pic.twitter.com/f5xRQjEo4j
Game 2: USA1 8, Michigan 5
This game was a battle for three quarters with the two teams all tied up at 5 heading into the fourth. Playing five games in two days finally caught up with the Wolverines as USA1 went on a 3-0 run to end the game and claim ninth place with an 8-5 victory.
Sophomore goalkeeper Heidi Ritner kept Michigan in the thick of it with six of her eight saves coming in the third period. USA1 was finally able to get some shots by her in the fourth.
U-M got a pair of goals from freshman Kathy Rogers, but could not get in the same rhythm they had the previous three games when they reached double digit goals.
Johnston did not score in the final game, but did finish the weekend with 12 goals. Sellers was close behind her with nine total in the five games. Ritner collected 31 saves.
U-M Goals: Rogers (2), Anderson, Sellers, Steere
U-M Assists: Cleveland, Johnson, H. Ritner, Sellers
U-M Saves: H. Ritner (8)
Tweet of the Game
Final Score: A 3-0 run in the 4th gave USA1 the victory. We place 10th at the Collegiate Cup.
— Michigan Water Polo (@UMichWaterPolo) November 5, 2017
U-M Goal Leaders: Kathy Rogers (2) pic.twitter.com/le4SAlGVgq
Michigan will open its 2018 season at the UCSB Invitational January 20-21 in Santa Barbara, California.
