No. 13 Indiana University Stops No. 12 Hartwick College 10-9 to Reach CWPA Eastern Title Game

Shae Fournier scores Indiana's ninth goal versus Hartwick

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Player of the Game Jakie Kohli (Jr., Burnaby, B.C./Moscrop Secondary) scored six times to key No. 13 Indiana University past No. 12 Hartwick College 10-9 in the semifinals of the 2011 Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Eastern Championship at Indiana's Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatic Center.

The victory advances the Hoosiers to the 2011 Eastern Championship title game at 3:00 p.m. versus archrival and nemesis No. 6-nationally ranked  University of Michigan.

Michigan, which stopped No. 19-ranked University of Maryland 11-6 in the other semifinal, will have a chance to make history as the Wolverines are seeking to become the first program since Slippery Rock University (1988-96) to win four straight Eastern Championship after claiming the 2008, 2009 and 2010 crowns.

In the history of the meetings betwen the two programs, Michigan holds five Eastern Championships, including the past three, while the Hoosiers possess the 2003 crown.

The last time the teams met in Indiana with an Eastern crown on the line was 2005 when the Wolverines silenced the Bloomington crowd with an 8-7 victory advance to the NCAA Championship in Ann Arbor.  The pattern could repeat itself again this year as Michigan will host the 2011 NCAA Championship in two weeks.

Hartwick and Indiana would not allow the other to pull away throughout the contest as the two teams clawed, scratched and fought for possession, position and traction from the opening whistle to the closing horn.

Western Division Most Valuable Player Charlotte Mensink (Jr., Nijerdal, Netherlands), who is appearing in her first Eastern Championship after transferring into Harwick prior to the start of the season, broke the ice in the contest with a scoring shot 25 seconds into the game to give the Hawks a quick 1-0 lead.

Indiana responded with a scoring shot by Lauren Wyckoff (Sr., Los Altos, Calif./Los Altos) 13 seconds later to even the scoreboard at 1-1, but Hartwick regained the advantage at 4:54 with a man-up tally by Shannon Leonard (Jr., Pointe Claire, Quebec).

The pattern of Indiana coming back with each Hartwick score continued as Kohli lobbed a shot into the cage at 3:57 before Kara Butler (Sr., Poway, Calif./Poway) repeated the feat at 3:03 to give the Hoosiers their first lead of the contest at 3-2.

Neither team was able to significantly capitalize on multiple scoring opportunities in the second period as Leonard scored at 7:48 to make the score 3-3 and Kohli zipped in her second marker of the afternoon at 5:25 to keep Indiana in front by one at 4-3.  Prior to halftime, the Hawks were finally able to take advantage of a Hoosiers' miscue as Sasha Freeborn (So., Auckland, New Zealand) finished a centering pass to catch the Indiana defense napping and knot the score at 4-4 entering the break.

The teams exchanged goals to open the second half as Kohli (7:00) and Freeborn (3:21) each found the back of the cage to keep the game tied at 5-5.

However, Indiana appeared to gain some positive offensive footing as Kohli (2:58) and Butler (2:19) rifled home shots to hand the Hoosiers a 7-5 lead through 24 minutes of play.

Hartwick lit up the scoreboard once again 29 seconds into the fourth period with another strike by Kohli to make it an 8-5 game.  The margin lasted for 69 seconds before Shae Fournier (Fr., Winnipeg, Manitoba/Grant Park) accepted a pass and broke in on Hartwick goalie Jessica Dorman (Sr., Auckland, New Zealand).  Fournier lobbed the ball up and over the raised arms of Dorman to make it a 9-5 game with the clock beginning to wind down.

The margin stayed at four for less than a minute as the pace quickened and the pressure mounted. 

Allyssa Analytis (Jr., Montreal, Quebec) pulled Hartwick to within three at 9-6 with a marker, but Kohli countered nearly immediately after the ball entered the goal mouth for her sixth score of the day to make it 10-6.

Needing a comeback of epic proportions to stun the Hoosiers, Lisa Bass (Jr., Montreal, Quebec) unleashed a crossing shot that found the twine to make it 10-7 at the 5:51 mark.  Analytis followed with her second strike of the day at 5:31 and Mensink split the Indiana defense for another goal at 4:28 to set the scoreboard at 10-9 and the Hoosiers' blood pressure at boil.

Hartwick's Dorman and Indiana netminder Cassie Wyckoff (Jr., Los Altos, Calif./Los Altos) raised their games over the final four minutes of the fourth period as Wyckoff recorded four stops in less than two minutes, while Dorman stopped two shots over the same duration to keep both clubs hopes alive of advancing to the next round.

However, it was Fournier who turned out to be the hero in the final seconds field blocking a shot and collecting the loose ball with two seconds on the game clock to preserve Indiana'a dreams of another Eastern title.

Overall, Wyckoff finished with 11 saves to earn the win, while Dorman netted 10 stops in taking the loss.

Hartwick will conclude the tournament in the third place game against No. 19 Maryland at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, May 1 as the Hawks will look to finish third at the Eastern Championship for a second year in a row, while Maryland will seek to match the program's all-time best modern finish of third.

Indiana Goals: Jakie Kohli (6); Kara Butler (2); Lauren Wyckoff; Shae Fournier

Hartwick Goals: Shannon Leonard (2); Sasha Freeborn (2); Allyssa Analytis (2); Charlotte Mensink (2); Lisa Bass

Saves: Indiana - Cassie Wyckoff (10) ; Hartwick - Jessica Dorman (11)

Exclusions: Indiana - 6 ; Hartwick - 2

Advantage Opportunities:  Indiana - 0-for-2 ; Hartwick - 1-for-6

Sprints: Indiana - 1-for-4 ; Hartwick - 3-for-4

Cards: YC - Barry King (Indiana)

Officials: Mark Koganov, Val Vasilchikov 

Hartwick College's Lisa Bass prepares to shoot as Indiana University's Nicole Redder closes