HONOLULU — The fifth-ranked University of Hawai'i women's water polo team completed a perfect weekend with wins over Biola and No. 12 Arizona State on the final day of the Rainbow Invitational at the Duke Kahanamoku Aquatic Complex.
UH opened the day with a 20-4 rout of Biola and completed the weekend sweep with a 14-7 win against No. 12 Arizona State in the tournament finale.
The Rainbow Wahine head back on the road for the three-day Triton Invitational, set for Jan. 31 to Feb. 2 in La Jolla, Calif. UH will open the tournament against fellow Big West member Cal State Fullerton on Jan. 31.
No. 5 Hawai'i 20, Biola 4
A total of 12 UH players contributed to the scoring led by freshman Ema Vernoux's four goals and the Rainbow Wahine rolled past the Eagles. Senior Stevilyn Griffin posted the first hat trick of her UH career in the rout.
Roni Perlman opened the scoring 54 seconds into the match and Morgan Rios followed with two more to give UH a 3-0 lead at the 5:16 mark of the first quarter. Bernadette Doyle and Griffin added to the lead and freshman Gabrielle Doyle scored her first career goal on a power play with 2:09 remaining in the first. Vernoux scored her first goal of the afternoon to close out the period.
Goals by Vernoux, Alia Burlock and Silvanne Slot extended the lead to 10-0 in the second quarter. Griffin and Jordan Wedderburn scored to send UH into halftime up 12-2.
Freshman Tea Brandon scored the first two goals of her collegiate career in the second half. Raha Peiravani and Esmee Roijen converted on penalty shots and Camille Radosavljevic got into the scoring column in the fourth quarter.
Daisy Logtens started in goal and had four saves in the opening period. Evelyn Miller played the second quarter and Nalani Yim and Madison Greger closed out the match.
No. 5 Hawai'i 14, No. 12 Arizona State 7
Vernoux's hot start to the day continued with a season-high six goals - the most by any Wahine in a game this year. Bernadette Doyle tallied three goals to earn her second hat-trick on the year, and Logtens went the distance at goalie recording five saves. The 'Bows went 5-for-7 on power play chances and held the Sun Devils to 2-for-8 on their power play opportunities.
ASU opened the match with a goal at the 6:48 mark, but the 'Bows quickly responded with a goal from Vernoux just 38 seconds later on a power play opportunity. Vernoux capitalized on another power play at the 2:07 mark to give the Rainbow Wahine the lead. On the last possession of the quarter, Slot skipped a goal across the face of the goalie at the buzzer to give UH a 3-1 lead after the first quarter.
Strong play on both sides of the ball allowed the 'Bows to outscore the Sun Devils 5-1 in the second quarter. Doyle posted three goals in the quarter earning her second hat-trick performance this season. Wedderburn fought through congestion over the middle to earn her 100th career goal. Vernoux also tallied another goal to contribute to UH's offensive attack.
The two teams went back-and-forth throughout the third quarter, trading three goals a piece. Vernoux netted her fourth and fifth goals while Morgan Rios scored her first goal of the contest to give UH an 11-5 lead.
A lightning quick release from Vernoux earned her six goals in the evening, securing the best individual scoring performance of the season. Griffin found the net against her former team to expand the Rainbow Wahine lead. Radsavljevic scored UH's final goal of the evening, extending their win-streak to three.
In the first match of the day, Arizona State scored with 1:56 left in overtime and the Sun Devils hung on in the final seconds to pull out a 12-11 win over Loyola Marymount.
In the third match of the afternoon, Loyola Marymount earned their first win in the Rainbow Invitational defeating Biola 18-8 in convincing fashion.
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