March 25, 2011
HONOLULU - The No. 11 SDSU women's water polo team won two games at the Hawai'i Invitational on Friday, defeating UC San Diego, 10-6, and Cal State East Bay, 13-6.
After being blown out by No. 5 Hawai'i on Thursday, SDSU (16-10; 0-4 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) began Friday by recording a bounce-back win over UC San Diego. Senior Sarah Brady got the scoring started for the Aztecs with her fourth goal in the last two games, but UCSD responded with consecutive goals to take a 2-1 lead. Junior Leanne Ford, who also has been on a hot streak lately, tied the game at two apiece when she beat UCSD goalkeeper Allie Taylor at the 1:41 mark.
In the second quarter, both teams would trade leads until junior driver Rachel Miller gave SDSU a 5-4 lead with just six seconds remaining in the half. It was a lead the Aztecs would never let go of, as they outscored the Tritons 5-2 the rest of the way in route to a 10-6 victory.
The Aztecs' offensive momentum would carry over into the afternoon, as SDSU took care of business in a 13-6 victory over Cal State East Bay.
After falling behind 1-0 in the first minute, Leanne Ford responded with her first of five goals on the day, making sure the Aztecs would never trail again. Ford, an Upland, Calif. native, now has a team-leading 44 goals this season, including eight in the last two days.
SDSU will next play two matches on Saturday at the Hawai'i Invitational before returning home to The Mesa. The first game, an international exhibition against Team Canada, will begin at 11 a.m. HST, while the second, also an international exhibition, will pit the Aztecs against Team Australia at 4 p.m. HST. Both games will take place inside the Duke Kahanamoku Aquatics Complex.
Hawai'i Invitational Day One Results (SDSU only)
No. 11 San Diego State 10, UC San Diego 6
Duke Kahanamoku Aquatics Complex - Honolulu, Hawaii
UCSD 2-2-2-0--6
SDSU 2-3-4-1--10
UCSD Goals: Melissa Bartlow 2, Kirsten Bates, Sarah Lizotte, Andrea McKinney, Felicia Orozco
SDSU Goals: Sarah Brady 2, Alex Ford 2, Meaghan Poland 2, Leanne Ford, Rachel Miller, Jenna Natalizio, Amber Pezzolla
UCSD saves: Allie Taylor - 8
SDSU saves: Kelly Campoli - 3
No. 11 San Diego State 13, Cal State East Bay 6
Duke Kahanamoku Aquatics Complex - Honolulu, Hawaii
CSEB 1-1-1-3--6
SDSU 5-3-3-2--13
CSEB Scoring: Whitney Bell 3, Claire Pierce 2, Tristan Kennedy-Donohue
SDSU Scoring: Leanne Ford 5, Samantha Voigt 2, Sarah Brady, Ashley de Goede, Alex Ford, Kimmy Keach, Jenna Natalizio, Meghann Pedersen
CSEB Saves: Jayme Pekarske - 6
SDSU Saves: Kelly Campoli - 6, Erin Abrams - 2