(Los Angeles, CA) In a game No. 19 Sun Devil Water Polo (8-12, 0-5) never fell out of against top-ranked USC (24-1, 5-0), six Sun Devil scorers recorded a goal in the 15-11 loss to Mountain Pacific Sports Federation opponent to close out road play. ASU outscored the Trojans 8-6 in the second half which led the team to the fifth-most goals scored in a road game in program history, though it was not enough to overcome their halftime deficit.
Defensively, the Sun Devils got it done drawing 14 exclusions and seven steals against a highly-offensive Trojan team averaging nearly 17 goals per game, ASU held the Trojans under that mark. Junior attacker Luca Petovary drew a game-high seven exclusions followed by freshman attacker Juliette Dhalluin’s five drawn exclusions. Goalkeepers Itzahiana Baca and Alexa Knutson combined for 12 saves on the day.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Trojans managed three first quarter goals, one of which was with a man-up, but junior utility player Tarah Schaffer got ASU on the board with 17 seconds remaining for just a two goal deficit at the end of one.
USC took charge in the second quarter after outscoring ASU 6-2. Freshman attacker Juliette Dhalluin and Schaffer were the lone Sun Devil scorers in the frame, as the team faced a 9-3 deficit at the half. Senior goalkeeper Itzahiana Baca got the start and tallied four saves in her first half of work.
Freshman goalkeeper Alexa Knutson subbed in to start the third quarter, as USC opened the third quarter with two goals in the first two possessions, but the Sun Devils went on to score four straight goals, three of which came from the center attack after freshman Sophie Shorter-Robinson accounted for two of the four goals and junior Alba Olivé Martí notched her only goal of the game. Junior attacker Luca Petovary was also a part of the four-goal streak to cut the deficit to just four.
The final frame ended with the two teams trading goals as each team tallied four goals in the fourth quarter to close out the game. Shorter-Robinson tacked on two more goals to match her career-high four goals on the day. Graduate attacker Tina Doherty was also on the score sheet in the fourth, and Dhalluin picked up her second goal with a successful penalty shot, but the 15-11 deficit was too much to overcome.
UP NEXT: The Sun Devils close out regular season at home for Senior Day on Saturday, April 22 at 1pm MST. San Jose State will be in town a week before hosting the Sun Devils in the MPSF Tournament, and the game can be viewed on ASU Live Stream 2.
Press Release courtesy of Sun Devil Athletics – Claudia Schwartz
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