ANN ARBOR, Mich. -
Darcy Scott-Hosaka,
Beth Novick, and
Iefke Van Belkum scored two goals apiece as No. 4 seed Hawaii beat No. 5 seed Loyola Marymount, 12-8, today in the opening round game of the 2005 NCAA Women's Water Polo Championship at the University of Michigan's Canham Natatorium.
The Rainbow Wahine (21-9) earned the right to take on No. 1 UCLA (31-0) Saturday in the semifinals. The Bruins pounded Wagner in the earlier game, 22-2.
Amy Logan put UH on the board in the first quarter just 90 seconds into the game skipping in a shot through the right side, but LMU counter quickly on their next possession as Stacia Peterson dumped in a shot from 2-meters. Iefke Van Belkum put the Rainbow Wahine back on top at the 3:33 mark skipping in a shot from on top through the left side. Darcy Scott-Hosaka then backhanded a pass on a fast break at 1:33 to put UH up, 3-1, to close out the first quarter.
Van Belkum made it a three-goal advantage at the 4:43 mark in the second quarter rifling in a shot from the left side on a power play. UH goalie Meike De Nooy then picked up a loose ball and found Beth Novick on a breakaway down pool. She then whistled in a shot with 3:25 left before half to give Hawaii a 5-1 lead. LMU cut the deficit to three as Rosanna Tomiuk found the upper left corner of the goal. UH then took advantage for another power play opportunity as Monika Kruszona found Audrey Harrer in the middle to make it 6-2. But LMU came back on the next possession and scored on a penalty shot with under a minute as UH took a 6-3 lead into halftime.
Novick got UH off to a fast start in the third whipping in a shot out front on a power play just 24 seconds into the quarter. After De Nooy blocked a shot, Scott-Hosaka came down on the ensuing play to pump in her second goal of the game and give UH its biggest lead, 8-3. Exclusion on Van Belkum giving LMU its second penalty shot in which Peterson scored. Kruszona then came down and blasted a shot through the right side to keep the five-goal advantage, 9-4. LMU's Christine Robinson and UH's Shannon Carroll exchanged goals to make it 10-5. Anna Sieprath got involved offensively lobbing in a shot with 1:24 remaining in the third to give UH a six-goal advantage.
LMUs Sarah Hamilton backhanded a shot in on a power play to close the gap to 11-6 in the fourth quarter with 4:11 left. Novick found Kruszona at the 2-meter area as the freshman netted her second goal of the game. LMU's Peterson netted her fourth goal on a penalty shot with four seconds remaining to cap the scoring.
Hawai`i goalie De Nooy tied a school record with 15 saves. LMU drops to 28-7 on the year and faces Wagner in the consolation game tomorrow.
UH's game against UCLA is at 10:30 a.m. HST (4:30 p.m. EST) and will be aired live on the internet broadcast at www.uclabruins.com.
Scoring by Quarters
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
LMU 1 2 2 3 - 8
Hawai`i 3 3 5 1 - 12
Goals by LMU: Stacia Peterson (4), Sarah Hamilton (2), Christine Robinson, Rosanna Tomiuk.
LMU Goalie Saves: Rachel Riddell (10).
Goals by UH: Iefke Van Belkum (2), Monika Kruszona (2), Beth Novick (2), Darcy Scott-Hosaka (2), Amy Logan, Audrey Harrer, Shannon Carroll, Anna Sieprath.
UH Goalie Saves: Meike De Nooy (15).
Power Play Opportunities: LMU 3-10: Hawai`i: 3-6.
Q U O T E S
Loyola Marymount Head Coach John Loughran
On tonight's performance ... "We didn't execute by finishing plays. We had a real hard time finishing our plays. We had a lot of people open for shots. Our shooting percentage was very poor today. We hit a lot of posts and we hit the goalie a lot. Their goalie made some really easy saves on us. We did not execute well, especially when we were open. So that was very frustrating. Defensively, we tried to go on runs in the third quarter, but every time we would score a goal they would come back. We would score and they'd come right back down and score one on us so it was very tough to get back into the game once we got down. Overall, I thought we came out a little tight and just didn't make the plays we needed to make. That was our biggest problem."
On Hawai`i's third-quarter scoring ...
"That totally changed the momentum of the game. We were getting ready to make a comeback. We were down 6-3 at the half and our goal was to get some easy goals and then playing great defense and getting some stops, but it just didn't happen that way. We had some breakdowns defensively where we really lacked communication. They got some easy shots by our goalie, so it was really difficult to get back in the game."
LMU Junior Utility Stacia Peterson
On the team ... "I think we just came out really tight. We are a young team, and I think that as the tournament progresses, we'll be able to loosen up. I think that next year's our year, so that's what we're looking for."
Hawai`i Head Coach Michel Roy
On shooting with power ... "Over the year that's what we've learned. We've learned that we have good firepower on the outside. Iefke (Van Belkum) has a great shot and so does Monika (Kruszona). We've got a few girls that can shoot the ball with power. At first, when we started to play together, that was the anxiety. The girls were fast and quick, but as we got to know each other we just calmed down. We got great movement and outside shooting. We made the goalie move and we had great opportunities."
On their upcoming game against UCLA ... "We've played them four times this year. We know them very well. They are amazing. They are without a doubt the best team in the country and should win the national title."
Hawai`i Senior Two-meter Beth Novick
On playing as a team ... "I think what I was most happy with is that we came out together as a team and we finished as a team. Everyone stepped up when they needed to step up. They put their goals in when they needed to. It was a team effort. We came out hard and strong. We were ready and we wanted it."
