Michigan
UC San Diego
Michigan Sweeps UC San Diego, Pacific to Open Wolverine Invitational
3/2/2019 9:47:00 PM | Water Polo
» Michigan tallied two wins to open up the Wolverine Invitational.
» U-M got six goals off the bench in win over No. 6 Pacific.
» Wolverines tallied eight saves and six field blocks against UC San Diego.
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Canham Natatorium)
Event: Wolverine Invitational (Day 1 of 2)
Scores: #7 Michigan 10, #14 UC San Diego 5; #7 Michigan 11, #6 Pacific 5
Records: U-M (10-7), UCSD (6-10), Pacific (5-6)
Next U-M Event: Sunday, March 3 -- host Wolverine Invitational – Day 2 (Canham Natatorium), 8:45 a.m.
• Boxscores: UC San Diego | Pacific
• Photo Gallery: UC San Diego
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- After playing 15 games in California, the No. 7-ranked University of Michigan water polo team showcased its talents in front of a home crowd on Saturday (March 2) with two wins over top-15 teams to start the Wolverine Invitational.
Game 1: No. 7 Michigan 10, No. 14 UC San Diego 5
The Wolverines held a 3-2 lead after one quarter and 4-3 advantage after two, but a key sequence midway through the third quarter propelled Michigan to the lead for good.
The Tritons had two opportunities to score on junior goalkeeper Heidi Ritner. The first was a shot from up top that Ritner went up to save. UC San Diego collected the rebound but Ritner again made herself big to cut off any good looks. This forced the Tritons' Sydney Boland to try and lob it over the top and it fell short of the goal.
The stops led to an opportunity on the opposite end of the pool for Michigan. Junior Maddy Steere found a wide-open Abby Andrews and she took her shot. The UCSD goalkeeper nearly made the save but could not hang on as the ball made its way into the goal to give U-M a 5-4 advantage.
That sequence started a 3-0 run for the Wolverines as 55 seconds later Skyler Pyle fired one in from the outside and then with 1:27 left in the third quarter, Kim Johnson drew a 5-meter penalty foul and Steere converted.
The Tritons made it 7-5 with 6:33 remaining, but Michigan finished strong with three more goals in the final 5:28 minutes for the 10-5 victory.
Ritner finished the game with eight saves and was helped by the defense in front of her, which tallied six field blocks. Two of those came from Pyle on the last two possessions of the third quarter.
Andrews and Steere finished with two goals and two assists each. Johnson had two goals and five drawn exclusions.
Two freshmen, Rylee Brower and Sydney Vranesh, made their collegiate debuts for Michigan late in the fourth quarter.
Game 2: No. 7 Michigan 11, No. 6 Pacific 5
These two top-10 teams already had met twice this season with Michigan taking the first game, 11-9, at the Stanford Invitational (Feb. 3) with Pacific answering with a 12-9 win at the Barbara Kalbus Invitational (Feb. 23).
Michigan fired on all cylinders from start to finish. The Wolverines held the Tigers scoreless in the first and third quarters to build a 2-0 lead, then stretched a 5-3 halftime advantage to 9-3 going into the final period.
Ritner was solid in goal once again with seven saves, but the real spark for the Wolverines came from the bench.
After senior Julia Sellers set the tone with two of her three goals coming in the first quarter, the bench would score six of U-M's nine goals the rest of the way. Sophomore Maddie O'Reilly scored a goal in each of the final three quarters to tie Sellers for the team lead. Pyle added two goals and freshman Erin Neustrom also scored on a tough inside play.
Johnson tallied three assists and two drawn exclusions, all key plays in the game, to help U-M come out on top, 11-5.
Michigan will be back in Canham Natatorium for two games on Sunday (March 3). The Wolverines will take on No. 13 Fresno State at 8:45 a.m. and No. 15 Long Beach State at 4 p.m. to close out the Wolverine Invitational. Admission to both games is free of charge.
