No. 1 Bruins Battle Back
March 5, 2012
MPSF Women's Water Polo Weekly Release - 3/5/12
UCLA (13-1 Overall/2-0 MPSF) Gisselle Naranjo delivered a game-winner with 2:47 left in regulation this past Saturday, lifting the top-ranked Bruins over No. 3 USC, 6-5. UCLA trailed 2-0 after one, 4-2 at half, and 5-4 after three, before the final score would be its only lead. Naranjo scored twice, as did Hannah Sebenaler. Caitlin Dement collected 11 saves in the cage. The Bruins return home for a conference game with San Jose State Saturday (Mar. 10).
ARIZONA STATE (15-2 Overall/1-0 MPSF) knocked off No. 5 San Diego State on Saturday in Tempe, earning its first conference win since beating the Aztecs on April 19, 2008, a span of 21 MPSF games. The Sun Devils topped a top-five team for the first time since 2010. Shannon Haas tied a school-record seven goals, also a single-game conference-high this year. Ianeta Hutchinson picked up a career-high 15 saves in goal. ASU hosts Cal Saturday.
STANFORD (13-1 Overall/1-0 MPSF) posted a pair of home wins against the Big West this past weekend, routing Long Beach State (14-4) and UC Irvine (17-5). In the win over the No. 8 Anteaters, the Cardinal raced out to an 8-0 lead in the first quarter. Alyssa Lo led with four goals while Ashley Grossman followed with three. Stanford led 4-0 after one vs. the 49ers, as Kiley Neushul went on for a hat trick. MPSF resumes at Hawaii Saturday.
SAN JOSE STATE (12-7 Overall/0-2 MPSF) extended its win streak to five with a sweep of this past weekend's Harvard Tournament. The Spartans took out the host Crimson (15-8), Iona (12-9), Princeton (13-12), and Brown (13-6). Maddie Reardon was in goal all weekend, totaling 40 saves, while Anna Natalizio scored twice in each game. San Jose State travels to UCLA for a Saturday MPSF game.
CALIFORNIA (15-4 Overall/2-0 MPSF) held off UC Irvine in Berkeley this past Saturday, 8-6. The Bears scored two goals in each quarter, and received hat tricks on the day from Breda Vosters and Ashley Young. Cal has five games left in the regular season, all MPSF contests. The journey begins Saturday at Arizona State.
USC (11-3 Overall/1-1 MPSF) was edged at home by top-ranked UCLA, 6-5, this past Saturday. Kaleigh Gilchrist and Monica Vavic tallied two goals apiece. Goalkeeper Flora Bolonyai picked up 10 saves. The Trojans host San Diego State Friday (Mar. 9) in another MPSF clash.
SAN DIEGO STATE (11-4 Overall/0-2 MPSF) dropped a 12-3 conference game at Arizona State last Saturday, as Meaghan Poland, Taylor Moreno, and Leanne Ford each scored. The Aztecs head to USC Friday for another conference road game.
HAWAII (4-6 Overall/0-2 MPSF) picked up two wins at the UC Irvine Invitational on Feb. 25-26, both on the second day, edging Long Beach State (6-4) and UC Davis (7-6). Amarens Genee scored twice in each victory, while Serena Reid combined for 18 saves on day two, 11 vs. the Aggies. The Rainbow Wahine host Stanford Saturday.
CAITLIN DEMENT KAP 7 MPSF PLAYER OF THE WEEK
UCLA senior goalkeeper Caitlin Dement (Chino, CA/Ayala HS) recorded 11 saves in the 6-5 win at USC on Saturday. Dement and the Bruins limited the Women of Troy to one goal in the second half (none in the fourth quarter), while holding them to over seven goals below their single-game average of 12.46 GPG coming in.
Also Nominated: Anna Natalizio (SJSU); Alyssa Lo (STAN)
SHANNON HAAS KAP 7 MPSF PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Arizona State junior Shannon Haas (Murrieta, CA/Vista Murrieta HS) matched the school record for goals in a single game with seven, also a 2012 MPSF-high, and netted her 100th career goal on her second of the day in a win over No. 5 San Diego State. She was 7-for-7 on shot attempts. The effort helped ASU to its first conference win since 2008, as it continued its best start in program history.
Also Nominated: Anna Natalizio (SJSU); Alyssa Lo (STAN)
ASHLEY GROSSMAN KAP 7 MPSF NEWCOMER OF THE WEEK
Stanford freshman Ashley Grossman (Santa Monica, CA/Harvard-Westlake HS) scored five goals in a 2-0 home weekend. Grossman continued her scoring run with a pair of goals in Saturday's 14-4 win over No. 19 Long Beach State, then followed up with a hat trick in Sunday's 17-5 win over No. 8 UC Irvine.