The maroon & gold outscored the Wolverines 9-4 in the final 23:28 of the game
La Jolla, Calif. – In the battle for fifth place at the Triton Invitational, No. 14 Sun Devil Water Polo (7-1) showed resiliency in a 10-8 victory against No. 10 Michigan (6-5) Sunday morning in La Jolla, California. The Sun Devils outscored the Wolverines 3-1 in the fourth quarter led by Emily Van Zonneveld, Millie Quinand Kat Featherstone each netting a goal to secure the teams second top-10 victory of the weekend.
After a slow opening frame, and facing a 4-1 deficit early in the second quarter, the Sun Devils stormed back with three unanswered goals to tie the game at 4-4 entering halftime. From there, ASU limited the Wolverines scoring opportunities and outpaced the opposition netting three goals apiece in the third and fourth quarters. Van Zonneveld’s second goal of the game with 3:54 left in the final frame gave ASU a two-goal cushion as the maroon & gold never looked back.
For the third straight game Luca Petovary led the team in scoring with four goals and it’s the seventh straight game with three or more goals, the senior scored 3+ goals in all four games this weekend, leading the team with 15 this weekend. Sanne Keijzer shined in net for the Sun Devils, allowing just the second lowest goal-total for the Wolverines this season.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Luca Petovary netted the first goal for the Sun Devils at the 7:18 mark on a 6-on-5 situation, then Michigan scored three unanswered to end the first quarter putting the Wolverines ahead 3-1.
- After a quick Wolverine goal, the Sun Devils stormed back with goals by Petovary, Alba Olivé Martí and Van Zonneveld to tie the game at 4-4 going into halftime.
- Each side traded goals in the third quarter and took advantage of their 6-on-5 advantages with neither side getting more than a goal lead.
- Lara Kiss netted a goal at 6:50 to tie the game at 5-5, then Petovary immediately answered back to tie the match at 6-6. Lastly, the senior put away a penalty shot to take a quick 7-6 lead before Michgian tied the game at 7-7 entering the fourth quarter.
- The scoring subsided in the final frame until Kat Featherstone gave the Sun Devils a 8-7 lead at the 5:43 mark, then Van Zonneveld extended the ASU lead to two at the 3:54 mark.
- Michigan responded immediately cutting the lead to one, but a Millie Quin netted the dagger to put the Sun Devils ahead 10-8 inside the final two minutes to seal the victory.
UP NEXT:
The Sun Devils return to Tempe by hosting the ASU Invitational on Friday, Feb. 9-11, featuring UC Santa Barbara, Marist, San Jose State and Ottawa-Arizona at Mona Plummer Aquatic Center. The maroon & gold kickoff the tournament on Friday facing No. 12 UCSB at 1 p.m. AZT. Coverage can be seen on the Sun Devil Water Polo social channels along with live stats on 6-8 sports.
Press Release courtesy of Sun Devil Athletics – Zach Wargo
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