USC
Hartwick
No. 3 USC Is Too Hot For Hartwick
March 28, 2012 | Women's Water Polo
March 28, 2012
LOS ANGELES, CALIF. -- The No. 3 USC women's water polo team rattled the back of the net 19 times in today's nonconference clash with No. 19 Hartwick, getting 11 different scorers in on the offensive onslaught for a 19-5 win at McDonald's Swim Stadium. The Women of Troy were paced by four goals from Patricia Jancso and hat tricks from Chelsea Silvers and Kaleigh Gilchrist in the win, which improved USC to 16-3 overall on the year.
After a 2-0 Trojan lead on an even score from Madeline Rosenthal and a slick passing series on a USC 6-on-5 that moved the ball from Nadia Dan to Monica Vavic for a Dominique Sardo score from the post, Hartwick cut it to a 2-1 game with a blast from Jemma Dendy Young. That prompted a tougher stand on the defensive end by the Trojans, while the USC offense also caught fire as seven different Women of Troy got in on the action during a 9-0 scoring run that spanned into the third frame. Jancso and Silvers each tallied a pair during the surge, with Michelle Caron topping off an 11-1 USC lead at the 5:02 mark of the third period. Kamila Zakirova ended the run with a slam that made it 11-2, only to have USC finish off the third with three more goals -- Rosenthal's second on a score out of set, a 6-on-5 finish from Gilchrist and Silvers' third of the day on a lob for a 14-2 Trojan lead entering the fourth frame.
Senior Morgan Vickers had taken over in goal at halftime, relieving sophomore Flora Bolonyai, who had pinned up four saves and allowed just one goal in the first half. Hartwick was able to generate three goals in the fourth, but the USC offense just kept firing. Gilchrist wheeled in another from set and then went back-to-back with a slick tip-in off a setup from Blair Moody. Jancso would get to four on two more rockets in the last stretch, while also serving up an assist on a Colleen O'Donnell blast with 27 seconds to go. Zakirova served up her second strike for Hartwick with eight seconds left, but Jancso had the last word with a buzzer-beater from half tank to wrap up her four-goal day and a 19-5 win for the Women of Troy.
USC now switches gears back to MPSF play with a Saturday (March 30) matchup against No. 5 California set for 1 p.m. at McDonald's Swim Stadium. The Trojans will also honor their three graduating senior -- Nadia Dan, Kara-Leigh Huse and Morgan Vickers in a pregame ceremony for Senior Day.
#3 USC 19, #19 Hartwick 5
USC 4 - 5 - 5 - 5 = 19
HART 1 - 0 - 1 - 3 = 5
SCORING:
USC -- Patricia Jancso 4, Chelsea Silvers 3, Kaleigh Gilchrist 3, Madeline Rosenthal 2, Dominique Sardo, Monica Vavic, Nadia Dan, Blair Moody, Jennifer Stiefel, Michelle Caron, Colleen O'Donnell.
HART -- Sasha Freeborn 2 , Kamila Zakirova 2, Jemma Dendy Young.
SAVES: Flora Bolonyai (USC) 4 [2 periods], Morgan Vickers (USC) 3 [2 periods], Hayley Cox (HART) 13.
