April 25, 2009
HONOLULU, HI - The seventh-seeded San Diego State water polo team dropped an overtime thriller to No. 6 seeded tournament host Hawai'i on the second day of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Water Polo Championship at the Duke Kahanamoku Aquatics Complex in Honolulu, HI. With the win, Hawai'i will face No. 5 San Jose State in the fifth place match on Sunday at 4:30 p.m. PT. San Diego State, meanwhile, will face No. 8 Arizona State at 3 p.m. PT on Sunday.
Junior Ronni Gautschi led the Aztecs with four goals, while senior Erinn Greenwood had three tallies of her own to complete the hat trick. Senior Anna Gonzales and sophomore Ashley Novack each added one score. Freshman Kelly Campoli had 11 saves in the front of the net.
UH got on the board first as Dagmar Genee scored three first quarter goals. The Aztecs got on the board with 1:54 to play in the first stanza when Gautschi found the back of the net on a 6-on-5 power play opportunity. SDSU would cut into the lead with nine seconds left in the quarter again off an advantage situation, but this time it was Greenwood who would find the back of the net. The Rainbow Wahine led 3-2 at the end of one.
Both teams scored two goals each in the second quarter, including two goals each by Carmen Eggens and Monika Eggens for UH in the quarter. San Diego State's Greenwood tallied her second score of the game at the 6:07 mark, while Novack connected a man advantage situation with thirty seconds to play before intermission. With the Aztecs closing the gap, the Rainbow Wahine led 5-4 at halftime.
In the third quarter, UH blanked San Diego State to take a 7-4 lead going into the fourth quarter. Leonie Van Der Molen and Kelly Mason each scored one goal in the quarter.
Hawai'i enjoyed a 7-4 lead at the start of the fourth quarter, but San Diego State came back strong in the opening minutes. The Aztecs got two quick goals from Gautschi and Greenwood to cut into the lead with just over four minutes to play in regulation. With the Aztecs down one score, SDSU rallied to tie the game with six seconds left with a goal by Gonzales, forcing overtime.
In overtime, neither team scored in the first three minutes, but in the second three minutes, San Diego State's Gautschi gave the Aztecs a 9-8 lead with 2:25 left to play.
UH answered with two goals, with Samantha Motekatis tying the game with 1:08 left and Saara Majuri scoring the game-winner with 23 seconds left, giving the Rainbow Wahine the victory.
Hawai'i improves to 17-8 on the season, while SDSU falls to 22-11. The Aztecs will return to the Duke Kahanamoku Aquatics Complex on Sunday to take on No. 8 seed Arizona State. This will be the third meeting between the Aztecs and the Sun Devils. SDSU won both contests this season, with the last victory coming in the final MPSF regular-season contest at the Aztec Aquaplex on April 11. Game time is set for 3 p.m. PT.
(6) Hawai`i 10, (7) San Diego State 9 OT
Duke Kahanamoku Aquatics Complex - Honolulu, HI
April 25, 2009
San Diego State 2 2 0 4 1 - 9
Hawai`i 3 2 2 1 2 - 10
SDSU Goals - Gautschi 4, Greenwood 3, Gonzales, Novack.
Hawai'i Goals - Genee 3, Van Der Molen 2, C. Eggens, M. Eggens, Majuri, Mason, Motekatis.
SDSU Goal Saves -Campoli 11.
Hawai'i Goal Saves - Bredin 5.