By Isabella Dandoy (@DandoyIsabella) – Spear Reporter
SJSU women’s water polo (12-11) had a successful weekend at the Michigan Invitational in Ann Arbor, MI. After a dominant week at the Santa Clara Tournament (5-1), the Spartans were looking to build off of those wins.
SJSU ended the invitational with a 3-1 record. The team boasts a 12-11 record overall and has a .522 win percentage.
On Saturday, SJSU faced St. Francis and Michigan, ending the day with an even 1-1 record.
Match one against St. Francis resulted in an early dub 10-1. Graduate Clarissa Wandinger and junior Ryann Lucchesi scored two goals with four shot attempts. Goalkeeper and graduate Hannah Henry racked up 12 significant saves, giving her a .923 save percentage.
Match two against Michigan looked much different. Match one had no recorded steals, but redshirt freshman Kielle Leggo, sophomore Lucy Miszeweski, and Lucchesi recorded one steal. Recent MPSF Newcomer of the Week and freshman Sinia Plotz also had one steal under her belt.
SJSU’s defense was not enough to win the game, resulting in a 9-4 loss. Fifth-year Kylee Jansen had 10 shot attempts but only three balls made their way to the back of the net. But on offense, senior Lior Ben David scored one goal in both games.
Sunday’s schedule included matches against Salem (5-9) and Bucknell (5-17).
The team dominated on offense early in the day, earning them their second dub of the invitational. Match one against Salem resulted in a 23-7 upset, with six players scoring more than two goals. Point leaders include sophomore Maiken Pardon with four goals and Plotz with five. Plotz shared the love with three assists.
In match two against Bucknell, SJSU’s dynamic offense prevailed. Freshman Genevieve Larkin, sophomore Renee Fleming, Wandinger, Plotz, Pardon, Leggo, and Ben David all got on the board. Ben David and Pardon went 100 percent on goals, with Ben David scoring five and Pardon scoring six.
We’ll see if SJSU women’s water polo will continue to dominate at its two-game homestand next week, starting with UCLA (12-3) on March 12 at 1 p.m.
