Confident after returning most of their starters from the 2004 campaign, the 14th-ranked UCSD women’s water polo team felt ready for No. 12 Michigan in their season opener at Canyonview Pool on Feb. 4. In falling to the Wolverines, 5-4, however, the Tritons found themselves troubled by a different opponent: first-game anxiety.
UCSD matched Michigan goal-for-goal for the better part of the contest, but suddenly became timid late in the third, taking fewer shots and giving up the tie-breaker to Sheetal Narsai at 4:37 in the period, and the eventual game-winner, tallied by Rebecca Godek with 5:29 left in the game. UCSD also struggled with its power plays, going zero-for-six in the last three periods after converting two-of-three in the opening frame.
With the loss, the Tritons now stand at 0-1 while the Wolverines move to 3-2. Tobi Lyman notched a hat trick for UCSD while Narsai and Shana Welch led Michigan with a pair of goals each.
UCSD sophomore 2-meter Sarah Bajorek cut the Wolverines’ lead to within one with 1:22 left in the game, but just as the Tritons grabbed possession and a six-on-five advantage with less than a minute to play, the nerves struck with a vengeance. Twice, UCSD senior driver Courtney Clevenger sailed a pass over the head of sophomore utility Michelle Perkins as the Tritons failed to get off a shot in the final minute.
“I was a bit nervous because it was one of those situations you dream about, being able to tie the game with 15 seconds left and with a man up,” Clevenger said, “It was a bit unexpected for the first game, but we were also timid on offense. We weren’t shooting the ball enough.”
The finish, however, was one of the few dark spots in an otherwise bright performance for the Tritons, led by a young defensive unit and by Lyman’s goals, each of which leveled the score in the first three periods.
“We played good enough to win tonight, the defense was aggressive and, except for those times where we could have shot more, our offense was good,” UCSD head coach Larry Sanders said.
Less than a minute after the opening of the second half, Lyman laced a shot from the eight-meter mark into the top corner of the cage to tie the game for the third time and quell any momentum the Wolverines may have had going into the half with a 3-2 advantage. Lyman also scored twice on man-up advantages in the first period.
“We outswam Michigan and our team was better defensively, stopping a lot of their better players. We tied the game up, but we needed more offensive movement and to get a few more shots on the cage,” Clevenger said.
The Tritons had trouble following up Lyman’s third goal, which paved the way for Narsai’s goal. From four meters out, Narsai skipped a shot just under UCSD junior goaltender Kaitlin Foe’s arm to put the Wolverines ahead at 4:37 in the third.
The cages remained silent until Godek gave Michigan the only two-goal lead of the game at the 5:37 mark in the fourth, beating Foe with a shot just inside the left post.
Bajorek seemed to break the timidity on offense when she put the Tritons within one late in the game. Pumping the ball from seven meters out, Bajorek sought out an open teammate, but, finding no one, fired a shot into the top of the cage rather than spending more time waiting for an opening.
The Tritons were in action Feb. 5 and Feb. 6 at the UCSD Invitational. Results were unavailable at press time.
