Feb. 23, 2009
IRVINE, Calif. - The No. 6 San Diego State water polo team bounced back from its first loss of 2009 to capture fifth place at the elite UC Irvine Invitational. The Aztecs had a five-goal outburst in the third stanza to pull away from 10th-ranked Arizona State, 10-8, in the fifth place match Sunday afternoon.
In the fifth-place match, SDSU got on the board first when junior two-meter Ronni Gautschi notched her fourth goal of the weekend at the 5:36 mark. The 10th-ranked Sun Devils would answer with back-to-back goals by freshman Mariam Salloum and junior Kelly Phelps. Arizona State would enter the second frame with the 1-2 lead and would fire off three goals early before the Aztecs would answer.
San Diego State found some offensive help when sophomore Sarah Brady found the back of the net with just over two minutes to play. SDSU would cut the deficit before the break with a five-meter penalty goal from Gautschi. The Aztecs found themselves down at intermission, 3-6, but would come blazing back in the third period.
The Scarlet and Black blanked Arizona State in the third quarter on the way to scoring five goals. Junior co-captain Danielle Pelke got the offensive charge started just 27 seconds into the third stanza as she found the back of the net for her sixth goal of the tournament. Brady would score just over a minute later and Pelke would follow to tie the score at 6-6. Senior co-captain Jenna Schuster would continue to fire for the Aztecs as she connected on back-to-back goals with just under three minutes left to play before the final frame.
The Sun Devils would come out strong in the final quarter with back-to-back scores from Salloum and Phelps, but the late surge would not be enough to hold off San Diego State. Seniors Anna Gonzales and Erinn Greenwood would connect for their first scores of the match late in the final frame to secure the Aztecs win and a fifth-place finish in the invite. Freshman Kelly Campoli recorded 10 saves in victory.
In its morning game, SDSU trailed early in the game as No. 9 San Jose State outscored the Aztecs 3-2. The score was tied 4-4 at intermission and the Spartans would hold a 6-5 lead at the end of the third quarter. The San Diego State offense would not give up, however, taking the lead with three straight goals to open the third quarter. San Jose State would get a final goal in the waning seconds of the match, but the Aztecs would go on to win 8-7.
Gautschi, Gonzales and Schuster headed the Aztec's comeback victory with two goals apiece, while Greenwood and Pelke all chipped in with one tally. Campoli had a solid showing with eight saves.
On day one of the invite, the Scarlet and Black opened up pool play with a 10-6 victory over No. 11 Michigan. Schuster led the scoring attack with four tallies, while Pelke had three. Greenwood would add two more scores, while Gonzales found the back of the net once. Campoli recorded eight saves in the cage.
The Aztecs would fall in second round action to No. 3 Hawai'i, 5-9. Junior Melissa de Jonckheere, Gautschi, Gonzales, Pelke and Schuster each tallied one goal in the match. Campoli again recorded eight saves for the Scarlet and Black.
No. 2 Stanford won the UC Irvine Invitational for the second time in three years with a 12-11 sudden death overtime victory over No. 1 USC.
San Diego State will take to the pool this weekend as the Aztecs will play host to both No. 12 UC Irvine and No. 13 Long Beach State. Saturday's match against the Anteaters will begin at noon PT and is the Aztecs' "Think Pink" game. SDSU will then take on the 49ers Sunday, Mar. 1, with another noon PT start.
UC Irvine Invitational
Anteater Aquatics Center - Irvine, Calif.
Sunday, Feb. 22, 2009
Third round match: No. 6 San Diego State 8, No. 9 San Jose State 7
San Jose State 3-1-2-1 - 7
SDSU 2-2-1-3 - 8
SDSU goals: Gautschi 2, Gonzales 2, Schuster 2, Greenwood, Pelke.
SJSU goals: Moss 2, Vogt 2, Curran, McKee, Torres.
SDSU goal saves: Campoli 8.
SJSU goal saves: Minson 7.
Fifth-place match: No. 6 San Diego State 10, No. 10 Arizona State 8
Arizona State 2-4-0-2 - 8
SDSU 1-2-5-2 - 10
SDSU goals: Brady 2, Greenwood 2, Pelke 2, Schuster 2, Gautschi, Gonzales.
Arizona State goals: Salloum 3, Phelps 2, Smith 2, Unbehaun.
SDSU goal saves: Campoli 10.
Arizona State goal saves: Harvey 8.
UC Irvine Invitational
Corona Del Mar High School - Newport Beach, Calif.
Saturday, Feb. 21, 2009
Second round match: No. 6 San Diego State 5, No. 3 Hawai'i 9
Hawai'i 2-1-4-2 - 9
SDSU 0-2-1-2 - 5
SDSU goals: Gautschi, Gonzales, de Jonkheere, Schuster, Pelke.
Hawai'i goals: Van Der Molen 3, Eggens 2, Mason 2, Genee, Van Raalte.
SDSU goal saves: Campoli 8.
Hawai'i goal saves: Bredin 7.
First round match: No. 6 San Diego State 10, No. 11 Michigan 6
Michigan 0-1-2-3 - 6
SDSU 3-2-3-2 - 10
SDSU goals: Schuster 4, Pelke 3, Greenwood 2, Gonzales.
Michigan goals: Robertson 4, Mantel, Orth.
SDSU goal saves: Campoli 8.
Michigan goal saves: May 6.