March 25, 2007
SAN DIEGO - The fourth-ranked San Diego State water polo team wrapped up play at the inaugural Aztec Invitational on Sunday with another pair of dominating performances, steamrolling over Pomona-Pitzer, 16-3, to start the day before blasting Cal State Bakersfield, 20-6, in the nightcap. The SDSU barrage was led by sophomore Jenna Schuster (Upland, Calif.), who lit up the Aztec Aquaplex scoreboard with nine goals on the afternoon, while freshman Ronni Gautschi (Morgan Hill, Calif.) broke through with seven scores of her own. With the sweep, San Diego State (18-4) established a new school record by extending its winning streak to 11 games.
In the opener against the Sagehens, the Aztecs held a slim 2-1 lead late in the first quarter when sophomore Anna Gonzales (Fresno, Calif.) fought through traffic and found the back of the net at the 2:28 mark to break open a tight ballgame. SDSU then took control with a seven-goal outburst in the second period, building a mammoth 10-1 advantage by intermission. The Aztecs maintained pressure at both ends of the pool in the second half as well, posting six additional scores, while keeping Pomona-Pitzer out of the cage except on two occasions.
Schuster, Gautschi and sophomore Erinn Greenwood (Sanger, Calif.) each recorded hat tricks for the game, while junior Becca Ur (Lompoc, Calif.) tallied two goals of her own. On the defensive side, senior goalkeeper Sarah Kilgore (Rossmoor, Calif.) turned back four shots in the first half before yielding to junior Heather Fenske (Lompoc, Calif.), who made seven saves over the final two frames. Freshman Danielle Pelke (Los Alamitos, Calif.) also chipped in with three steals.
San Diego State continued its hot shooting the in the finale against the Roadrunners, scoring 20 goals in a game for just the eighth time in the program's 13-year history. However, the opening minutes were hardly indicative of the frantic pace as both teams missed scoring opportunities early on. The Aztecs finally broke through at the 4:23 mark of the first quarter when Schuster corralled a Gonzales miss and flipped the ball past Bakersfield goalie Tatiana Yakina during a 6-on-5 opportunity. Gonzales converted a penalty shot shortly thereafter, while senior Stacy Werner (Lodi, Calif.) tacked on a goal just 28 seconds later, giving SDSU a quick 3-0 advantage.
It was all Aztecs the rest of the way as the Scarlet and Black tacked on six goals in the second period and exploded for eight more in the third stanza. Schuster tallied a career-high six goals, while Gonzales and Gautschi finished with four each. SDSU displayed exceptional ball movement throughout the blitz as evidenced by a season-high 16 assists. Senior Elana Cervantes (Davis, Calif.) dished out four of her own, while sophomore Jessica Pace (Santee, Calif.) added three. The Aztecs also came away with 16 steals as Werner, Ur and junior Tiphanie Elliott (Porterville, Calif.) contributed three apiece.
SDSU finished the two-day, round-robin tournament with a 4-0 mark, outscoring its opponents by a combined score of 66-13.
The Aztecs head back out on the road next weekend when they travel to Tempe, Ariz., for the Arizona State Invitational, March 31-April 1, at the Mona Plummer Aquatic Center on the ASU campus.
#4 SAN DIEGO STATE 16, POMONA-PITZER 3
Aztec Aquaplex
San Diego, Calif.
Pomona-Pitzer 1-0-1-1--3
San Diego State 3-7-4-2--16
Pomona-Pitzer goals: Rachel Hiese, Noelle Heise, Kimi Ide-Foster
San Diego State goals: Ronni Gautschi 3, Erinn Greenwood 3, Jenna Schuster 3, Becca Ur 2, Elana Cervantes, Anna Gonzales, Jessica Pace, Danielle Pelke, Stacy Werner
Pomona-Pitzer goalie saves: Elena Peifer - 5
San Diego State goalie saves: Sarah Kilgore - 4, Heather Fenske - 7
#4 SAN DIEGO STATE 20, CS BAKERSFIELD 6
CS Bakersfield 2-1-2-1--6
San Diego State 4-6-8-2--20
CS Bakersfield goals: Neshmil Ariy 3, Yulia Blinovskaya, Kelly Bowling, Bori Toth
San Diego State goals: Jenna Schuster 6, Ronni Gautschi 4, Anna Gonzales 4, Hannah Klein, Jessica Pace, Danielle Pelke, Becca Ur, Jamie Vessey, Stacy Werner
CS Bakersfield goalie saves: Tatiana Yakina - 7, C.J. Longeuay 3
San Diego State goalie saves: Sarah Kilgore - 9, Kristin Guissanie - 3