USC
Hawai'i (NCAA Semifinals)
USC Locks Down 9-7 NCAA Semifinal Win Over Hawaii
May 13, 2006 | Women's Water Polo
May 13, 2006
DAVIS, CALIF. -- The top-seeded USC women's water polo team avenged its first loss of the season with a 9-7 win over Hawaii in the NCAA Women's Water Polo Semifinals. The Trojans pulled out of a tight first half and took a resounding lead that they would not give up, earning a place at the NCAA Championship game. USC will face UCLA at 5 p.m. on Sunday (May 14) at UC Davis's Schaal Aquatics Center. USC improves to 27-2 with Saturday's semifinal win.
Moriah Van Norman became USC's No. 3 all-time career scorer with a three-goal game against the Rainbow Wahine. The senior now boasts 214 career goals.
The first period was marked by a defensive battle. The crossbar proved an eighth defender against the Women of Troy as three Trojans shot careened off the cage. USC earned four ejections in the period and made good on the second when Brittney Hayes rifled in a bullet for a 1-0 USC lead at the 4:51 mark. The Trojan defense successfully crashed the two-meter slot for numerous takeaways that stifled the Rainbow Wahine offense. It wasn't until Hawaii's first 6-on-5 chance that it was able to break through with a tying score from Anna Sieprath. USC was granted one last 6-on-5 opportunity in the period, but with just one second on the clock, time drained before USC was able to strike.
USC goalie Whitney Morgan came up with two big saves on Hawaii's first possession of the second period, but a skip shot from Kristy Bagnall went bar-down and in to put Hawaii up 2-1. Kami Craig earned a four-meter penalty shot soon after, and Anna Pardo put it away to tie it back up, but another Rainbow Wahine 6-on-5 advantage was finished off by Iefke Van Belkum with a skip shot for a 3-2 Hawaii edge with 4:02 left in the half. USC was finally granted a 6-on-5 advantage that soon became a 6-on-4 situation. Erika Figge crossed to Patty Cardenas on the left side, and Cardenas drilled the score to make it 4-3 with 2:35, and then Moriah Van Norman evened things up with a rocket out of two meters that made it 4-4 to hold until halftime.
Van Norman whipped in her second goal of the game to get USC back in front, but another 6-on-5 score by Hawaii tied it up again 5-5. Hayes notched her second goal soon after with a 6-on-5 strike that she put away crosscage for a 6-5 USC lead, and then Kami Craig powered in another goal for USC with Hawaii defenders hanging on her to bump the Trojans up 7-5 with 2:57 left in the third. The Trojan defense remained stingy in the frame, shutting down the Rainbow Wahine the rest of the way while blasting in one more score before the end of the third. Cardenas blazed in a long skipper from the top with eight seconds left to boost USC up 8-5 entering the fourth period.
Morgan opened the final period with a huge save in a one-on-one situation with Bagnall. USC couldn't finish off their next possession, but Morgan put another stop to Hawaii's offense with another save. On a USC 6-on-5, Cardenas found Van Norman at two meters for a quick-hit goal and a 9-5 USC lead with 5:10 left to play. Hawaii earned another 6-on-5 that became a 6-on-4 with Pardo's third ejection of the game, and Mason got the goal for Hawaii on the advantage. Bagnall then scored again for the Rainbow Wahine, making it 9-7 USC with 4:09 on the clock. That's as close as the Rainbow Wahine would get, however, as the USC defense put a vice grip on Hawaii the rest of the way to lock down USC's trip to the NCAA championship game.
UH 1 - 3 - 1 - 2 -- 7
USC 1 - 3 - 4 - 1 -- 9
SCORING:
USC -- Moriah Van Norman 3, Brittany Hayes 2, Patty Cardenas 2, Anna Pardo, Kami Craig.
UH -- Kelly Mason 2, Kristy Bagnall 2, Anna Sieprath, Iefke Van Belkum, Amy Logan.
SAVES: Whitney Morgan (USC) 9, Meike De Nooy (UH) 7.
6-on-5 ADVANTAGES:
USC -- 4 of 10, 1 for 1 penalty shots
UH -- 5 of 8
