Water polo matches school win record in victory over SJSU
The #4 Arizona State University water polo team matched the school record for single-season victories as the squad dropped #10 San Jose State, 10-8, on Sunday in San Jose, Calif., in a Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) matchup featuring two teams entering the competition tied for fifth in the conference.
Shannon Haas led the way offensively for Arizona State (21-5, 3-3 MPSF) with four scores, one in each quarter and found the cage three times on power-play opportunities. Overall, the Sun Devils were five-of-seven with the player advantage.
With the win, the Sun Devils matched the school record for single-season wins at 21, a mark set by the 2008 team. ASU also earned its first conference road win of the season with the victory.
In a fast-paced first quarter, the team were tied, 3-3, before Arizona State scored the next four goals to close out the first half with a 7-3 lead. Goals by SJSU’s Dani Curran and Katie Buzzetta cut San Jose State’s deficit in half, but the Sun Devils ran off the next three scores to go up 10-5 midway through the fourth and held on for the remainder of the game
"The second quarter was the one where we settled down and played our kind of polo the most. But, I felt like the third quarter, we got some good opportunities, but didn't put the ball on goal," said Arizona State coach Todd Clapper, whose team began the day tied with San Jose State for fifth place in the MPSF standings.
Goalkeeper Ianeta Hutchinson had 10 saves from the cage for the Sun Devils, including one penalty shot block, while the team got two goals apiece from seniors Alicia Brightwell and Kelsey White to help guide the team to the victory.
With the win, the Sun Devils split the weekend’s competition after falling 12-8 to #2 Stanford on Saturday. ASU will now have a week off before hosting a doubleheader at home on Saturday, April 14 as the team welcomes Hawai’i and Cal Baptist to the Mona Plummer Aquatic Center to wrap up the 2012 regular season.
**Portions of this release courtesy of the SJSU Media Relations department
#4-Arizona State (21-5, 3-3 MPSF) 4-3-1-2=10
#10-San Jose State (14-9, 2-4 MPSF) 3-0-2-3=8
Goal Scoring
Arizona State – Shannon Haas, 4; Alicia Brightwell, 2; Kelsey White, 2; Miriam Salloum, 1; Anna Kertes, 1
San Jose State – Katie Buzzetta, 3; Anna Natalizio, 3; Dani Curran, 2
Goalkeeper Saves
Arizona State – Ianeta Hutchinson, 10
San Jose State – Meagan Minson, 9
Ejections
Arizona State – 9
San Jose State – 7