UC Irvine
Princeton
Women's Water Polo Digs Deep for NCAA Fifth Place Finish
May 10, 2015 | Women's Water Polo
PALO ALTO, Calif. --- Fifth-seeded UC Irvine proved they were the fifth-best program in the nation fending off the CWPA champs, Princeton, with a 6-5 victory Sunday afternoon of the NCAA Championships at Avery Aquatic Stadium.
The defenses were at the forefront for a majority of the contest with the first goal not being scored until the 2:12 mark of the first period as Princeton (31-5) got one from Ashley Hatcher, her 82nd of the season. The rest of the period was run by junior goalie Ashleigh Johnson who stopped eight shots to keep UCI scoreless and trailing, 1-0.
The 'Eaters broke through with 5:43 left in the half as Mary Brooks drove down the middle and pelted Johnson who initially stopped it for her 10th consecutive save to start the match, but the rebound fell to Brooks to shoveled it through her to tie the match at 1-1.
The Tigers responded with 3:07 left in the half to make it 2-1, and held onto that advantage thanks to a 14-save half by Johnson.
UC Irvine (21-9) started the second half off well as Brooks came through to tie the match up, and a long Jillian Yocum-outlet to Danielle Warde to finish with a push shot over Johnson to give UCI its first lead, 3-2, with 2:54 left in the third period.
The Tigers responded with a pair of goals of their own to regain the lead at 4-3 heading into the final quarter.
The fourth quarter commenced with an early goal from Brooks to tie the match up, and Warde followed suit once again with her second of the game to take the lead back, 5-4, with 4:50 left in the match.
Princeton answered in the following possession on a skip shot from Hatcher that snuck its way through to tie it back at 5-5.
Mary Brooks had the final say with her fourth of the match and ninth of the tournament with 3:45 to go for the 6-5 lead.
The Anteater defense clamped down in the final two possessions as Yocum denied her sixth shot of the match with her head, and fellow senior Warde beat a Tiger to a loose ball with 18 seconds left to earn possession and salt away the match and a fifth place finish for the Anteaters, 6-5.
Yocum's six saves were enough to make her the all-time leader in saves in program history with 937 surpassing Lauren Machanis. Johnson on the other end turned back an NCAA match-record 22 shots as the 'Eaters put 28 of their 37 shots on target.
Thirteen came from Brooks who put 11 on target and four in the back of the net. Warde backed up her two goals with five steals and earned three exclusions.
Cambria Shockley had three assists for the 'Eaters while also firing five of her six shots on target. Other contributors were Destene Albers with an assist, two steals, and an earned exclusion while Mackenzie Milham stood tall on defense and had a steal and earned exclusion to show for it.
"I gained a lot of respect for Princeton today. They fought and never gave us an inch, and made us work for that victory," Head Coach Dan Klatt noted on the contest that was never more than a one-goal difference.
"We answered their challenge extremely well. That's the type of water polo that I want this program to be known for. A very hard-earned victory. The thing I'm most proud of is the how we finished. The way that match and the careers of our seniors ended today could not have been any more perfect. Jillian (Yocum) making that save off her head, and then Danielle (Warde) chasing down the loose ball to secure the win exemplifies them and this program, and I couldn't be more proud"
The Anteaters finish out the 2015 season with a 21-9 record, and with the five goals allowed became just the third team in the program's 15 seasons to allow less than 200 goals in a year matching the 2008 and 2013 squads.
UC Irvine finished fifth for the second time in its four trips to the NCAA Tournament joining the 2011 squad.
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1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
F |
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UCI |
0 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
6 |
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PRIN |
1 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
5 |
UCI goals: Mary Brooks (4), Danielle Warde (2)
PRIN goals: Ashley Hatcher (2), Jessie Holechek, Emily Smith, Chelsea Johnson
Saves: Jillian Yocum (UCI) – 6; Ashleigh Johnson (PRIN) – 22
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