SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - The No. 18 UC San Diego women's water polo team opened its 2011 campaign with an 11-8 loss to No. 7 Michigan, but followed with a resounding 24-3 win over Vanguard Saturday afternoon at the UCSB Winter Invite in Campus Pool at UC Santa Barbara.
Hanalei Crowell scored three goals to lead the Tritons against the Wolverines, adding two assists and three steals in the contest. After giving up a pair of early goals, Kristen Ostosh had a solid game between the pipes, tallying 12 saves in her first career start.
"Kristen really stood out for our team today," said UCSD head coach Brad Kreutzkamp. "She rebounded nicely and really kept us in the game against Michigan."
After falling behind at halftime, UCSD (1-1) rallied to tie Michigan, 5-5, midway through the third quarter. However, the Wolverines, ranked No. 1 in the CWPA Division I Poll, pulled away with six more second half scores.
"Michigan is one of the best teams in the country and we hung right in with them," said Kreutzkamp. "That is great to see in our first match of the season."
The Tritons' afternoon tilt with Vanguard turned into a laugher early, as UCSD raced to a 13-3 halftime lead. Melissa Bartow and Kelsey Schultz would pour in four goals apiece to lead UCSD in the match, with Katie Anderson following with three scores.
Every player who suited up for UCSD scored against Vanguard.
"This is the first time I've ever seen everyone on one team score in a match," said Kreutzkamp.
UCSD returns to the pool tomorrow with matches against conference-foe Sonoma State and No. 12 UCSB at 9:30 a.m. and 12:40 p.m., respectively.
For up-to-the-minute results of this weekend's Winter Invite, click on the link on the women's water polo homepage at UCSDTritons.com or click here.
After the UCSB Winter Invite, UCSD will return to Canyonview Pool in La Jolla for matches with Long Beach State (Feb. 4, 6:00 p.m.) and Cal State East Bay (Feb. 11, 6:00 p.m.) The following weekend, Feb. 12-13, the Tritons will host the Triton Invitational Tournament.
