 |  |
Eight is Enough: No. 12 Michigan Stops No. 17 Indiana 9-8 for Western Division Title
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- The No. 12-ranked University of Michigan water polo team never trailed en route to its eighth consecutive CWPA division crown, edging No. 17-ranked Indiana by a 9-8 score in the title match of the CWPA Western Division Championship on Sunday afternoon (April 18) at IU's Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatic Center.
Senior Julie Hyrne (Sunnyvale, Calif./Archbishop Mitty) scored five goals, including the game-winner, and drew two power-play opportunities for the Maize and Blue. Senior Mary Chatigny (Palm Springs, Calif./Palm Springs) and sophomore Alison Mantel (Miami, Fla./Gulliver) had a goal and two assists each.
Senior/Junior Brittany May (Santa Barbara, Calif./Santa Barbara) shined in goal, backstopping the Wolverines with a career-high 12 saves. Two of May's most spectacular stops came on a double-ejection penalty kill in the third quarter.
Michigan set the tone for the first half with a strong defensive showing in the early going. On its first seven trips down the pool, IU was held to just one shot as the Wolverines forced six turnovers. It was not until after the midway point that either team was able to find the back of the net. After being fouled at two meters, sophomore Sarah Roberts (Costa Mesa, Calif./Newport Harbor) tossed a pass to Mantel waiting on the outside where she powered a shot off an IU defender and in. Michigan did not rest on its laurels after the Hoosiers knotted things up at 1-1 with 2:12 remaining, scoring on a Chatigny skip shot on its next trip down. A minute later, Chatigny got together with senior Sharayah Hernandez (Pico Rivera, Calif./El Rancho) to give U-M a 3-1 lead after one period of play.
The Wolverines tacked on a power-play goal to start the second period before both teams settled into a back-and-forth defensive battle. Indiana scored two quick goals at 4:40 and 5:20 of the period to pull U-M's lead down to one. However, Michigan surged in the final minutes and opened up a 7-3 lead at the break. Hyrne netted her second of the frame on a no-look shot that she curled around an IU defender. A half-minute later, Hyrne quickly threaded a pass to freshman Meagan Cobb (Hudsonville, Mich./Hudsonville) at two meters, following an IU ejection where the freshman delayed and then pumped her shot into the back of the net. With one second left in the half and her back to the goal, Hyrne flicked a prayer over the Hoosier goalkeeper's head and into the cage.
With a new goalie in the net and only two periods left, Indiana came out with a full head of steam in the second half. Getting in its way was May who started the period with a handful of big saves. Perhaps her biggest pair of stops came on a double-ejection penalty kill two minutes into the stanza. IU set up and rifled a shot from the left that May guided to safety. Still on the power-play, Indiana set up another chance, this time from the perimeter, and May was there to answer the bell. Hyrne tallied just before the midway point to open up an 8-3 lead for the Wolverines. The Hoosiers tried to pick up ground on the Wolverines, but every time they scored in the period, Hyrne answered. The U-M senior captain scored her second of the period, which proved to be the game-winning goal, sandwiched between both Hoosier scores in the period.
With a four-goal pad to protect in the fourth period, Michigan bent but refused to break under the pressure of the Hoosiers offense. IU scored just over a minute into the frame and continued to pepper May with shots. Two minutes after the goal, a Hoosier driver let a heavy shot go that May redirected off the post and wide. The home team maintained the pressure and after scoring with 3:21 remaining, pulled back to within one goal with just over a minute left. Urgently trying to make their 9-8 lead stand up, the Wolverines buckled down as they tried to ride out the clock. In the final 20 seconds of the game, sophomores Ryley Plunkett (Modesto, Calif./Johansen) and Lauren Orth (Poway, Calif./Poway) were tasked with protecting the ball until the clock ran out. With the aid of two U-M timeouts and the evasive swimming of the sophomore duo, Michigan held on and hoisted the division trophy for the eighth straight year.
Michigan will remain on the title defense path at the CWPA Eastern Championship Fri.-Sun. (April 24-26) in Cambridge, Mass. The Wolverines will be seeking their first back-to-back Eastern titles and the automatic bid to the NCAA Championship that comes with it. Seeding for the conference championship will be announced on Monday (April 20) at approximately 1 p.m. on the CWPA website.
