April 28, 2012
SAN DIEGO - The eighth-ranked and seventh-seeded San Diego State women's water polo team bounced back on Saturday against San Jose State with an 11-8 win in the consolation bracket of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championship. With the win, SDSU improves to 22-10 on the year, while the Spartans drop to 18-13.
San Jose State came out and dominated the opening quarter by scoring five goals within a six-minute stretch. The Aztecs rallied back, however, to cut the deficit to 5-3 at the end of the first.
In the second quarter, SDSU's defense stepped up and kept the Spartans scoreless. The Aztec offense, meanwhile, scored three goals to take a 6-5 lead at the half.
The Aztecs maintained their momentum in the third quarter as they tallied two goals to complete a 5-0 scoring run over a 12-minute span that started during the previous quarter. San Jose State was finally able to score a goal after an extended scoring drought and trailed SDSU by an 8-6 margin at the end of three.
In the final quarter, the Spartans managed to pull within two at 10-8 with 2:13 remaining, but SDSU made sure SJSU didn't get any closer as it scored at the 1:41 mark to clinch the victory.
Amber Pezzolla led the Aztecs as she posted a hat trick. Carina Carballo, Alex Ford and Leanne Ford, meanwhile, each tallied two goals. Rounding out SDSU's scorers were Anique Hermann and Meaghan Poland as they each scored a goal.
San Diego State will now prepare to take on No. 4 seed Arizona State in Sunday's fifth-place game at 12:30 p.m. PT at the Avery Aquatic Center in Palo Alto, Calif.
No. 8 (7) San Diego State 11, (6) San Jose State 8
Avery Aquatic Center | Palo Alto, Calif.
SDSU 3-3-2-3--11
SJSU 5-0-1-2--8
SDSU goals: Pezzolla 3, Carballo 2, A. Ford 2, L. Ford 2, Hermann, Poland
SJSU goals: Curran 2, Natalizio 2, Stewart 2, Henry, Waasted
SDSU saves: Campoli, 12
SJSU saves: Minson, 8