UCLA
CSU Bakersfield (Quarterfinal)
No. 2 Bruins Advance to MPSF Semis
April 29, 2016 | Women's Water Polo
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – Shaking off a slow start, the second-ranked UCLA women's water polo team coasted into the MPSF semifinals after downing No. 25 CSU Bakersfield on Friday. With the 10-3 win, the Bruins advance to Saturday's semifinal matchup against No. 3 Stanford.
UCLA (23-3, 5-1 MPSF) got off to a slow start, not finding the back of the net until 3:21 into the first quarter. Ashley Zwirner fired in a skip shot off an assist from Mackenzie Barr to even the score at 1-1. After a series of exclusions, turnovers, and missed shots, Devin Grab ended a three-minute scoring drought for both teams when she notched another for the Bruins. Freshman Louise Hazell tallied the assist.
In the second quarter, the squads traded goal for goal. Lizette Rozeboom and Barr scored for the Bruins, while Ashley Paz and Kristen Jensen netted one apiece for the Roadrunners. UCLA closed out first half action with a 4-3 lead over CSU Bakersfield.
The Bruins came out like gangbusters in the second half, lighting up the cage with three unanswered goals. Grab started the spree off a dish from Aubrie Monahan. Double teamed down low, Alexa Tielmann followed suit with a skip shot off an entry pass from Rozeboom. Assisted by Nicole Reynolds, Kelsey O'Brien then extended UCLA's lead to 7-3, forcing a CSUB timeout. The Roadrunners failed to find the back of the net as the third period came to an end.
Carrying this momentum into the final quarter, the Bruins outscored the Roadrunners 3-0 once again. Zwirner converted a power play off an assist from Monahan to kick things off. UCLA's next goal started on the defensive end with a steal by Elissia Schilling. Assisted by Rachel Whitelegge, Hazell then extended the lead to 9-3. The Bruins' final goal came from Rozeboom, who rocketed one in with just over a minute left in regulation.
Overall, UCLA assisted on nine of its 10 goals. Rozeboom, Zwirner, and Grab led the Bruins in scoring with two apiece, while Monahan led with two dishes. Defensively, UCLA tallied 11 steals. The Roadrunners posted 20 turnovers, 13 of which came in the second half. The Bruins forced six of those second-half turnovers and converted two into goals. In the cage, veteran keeper Alex Mussleman recorded five saves.
Next up, the Bruins face third-ranked Stanford in the MPSF Tournament semifinals on Saturday. The game begins at 12:45 pm PDT at Hillman Aquatic Center. Live streaming is available here.
No. 2 UCLA (2, 2, 3, 3 – 10)Rozeboom, Zwirner, Grab – 2; Hazell, Barr, O'Brien, Tielmann – 1
No. 25 CSU Bakersfield (1, 2, 0, 0 – 3)
Jensen, Barrett, Paz – 1
Saves: UCLA (Musselman – 5); CSUB (Wahlstrom – 14)
