April 5, 2014
SAN DIEGO - Anique Hermann's goal with 0.22 seconds left in the fourth quarter and Rachel Mitchell's 11 saves propelled San Diego State water polo to a 6-5 victory over No. 11 LMU Saturday afternoon at Aztec Aquaplex. With the win, SDSU improves to 19-10 overall and takes sole possession of first place with a 3-0 record in the Golden Coast Conference. The Lions, meanwhile, fall to 17-10 (4-1 GCC).
With the score tied at 5 and just over two minutes left on the clock, each team a called a timeout only to come up empty on their respective possessions. After the Aztecs came up with a huge defensive stop, they got the ball back with seven seconds left and drew a foul, leaving less than a second to play. Hermann then collected herself and fired a shot toward the lower right corner and deposited her shot past the outstretched reach of LMU goalkeeper Claire Wright to provide the winning goal for the home side.
The game started as a defensive battle as both teams were solid on the perimeter and in net. The frame featured only one goal when Nikole Ferrari found Ioli Benekou, who fired in her shot from the left side with 2:54 left on the clock.
The Lions got on the scoreboard just over a minute into the second quarter when Ivana Castro scored, but SDSU answered nearly two minutes later. After Hermann drew an ejection, Ferrari immediately fired a pass to Hermann and she scored to put the Aztecs ahead by one. LMU, however, leveled the score after Danielle Johnson found the back of the net.
LMU looked poised to take its first lead of the day when San Diego State was whistled for a penalty. But when Alexandra Honny launched her shot, Mitchell, who made stop after stop the entire game, stonewalled her to preserve the tie. The denial seemed to get the Aztecs going as Mitchell made a save and steal, which led to Hermann's floater two and half minutes in. Later, Hermann drew a penalty and Benekou squeezed her shot past Wright to give SDSU a two-goal lead. The Lions, however, notched a 6-on-5 goal (Johnson) with 44 seconds left to get within one goal heading into the final period.
LMU tied the score once again when Johnson scored on a power-play opportunity, only to have the Aztecs retake the lead when Benekou sent a missile in the lower right corner with 3:29 to play. A minute later, a San Diego State turnover at mid-pool led to LMU's Laura Lopez knotting the score at 5 with 2:27 left in regulation, which led to the aforementioned sequences and the SDSU win.
San Diego State returns to action on Friday, April 11, when it takes on Santa Clara on the road. First sprint for the GCC contest is set for 3 p.m. PT.
San Diego State 6, No. 11 LMU 5
Aztec Aquaplex; San Diego, Calif.
LMU 0-2-1-2--5
SDSU 1-1-2-2--6
LMU goals: Johnson 3, Castro, Lopez
SDSU goals: Benekou 3, Hermann 3
LMU saves: Wright - unavailable
SDSU goals: Mitchell - 11