March 15, 2015 DAVIS, Calif. -
Freshman
Greta Kohlmoos and
Paige Virgil combined for five goals, including four during a 6-1 comeback run, to pull 11th-ranked UC Davis from a first-quarter deficit en route to an 11-8 win over Marist in women's collegiate water polo action at Schaal Aquatics Center Sunday afternoon.
The Aggies avoided the upset to move to 12-10 for the year. The Red Foxes, members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference and previously ranked in the Top 20 this season, slip to 5-8 for the year.
Kohlmoos scored her first hat trick of the year, posting her third straight multi-goal game after entering March with just four tallies. Virgil added another two while Allyson Hansen, Keelia Houston, Sammi Murphy, Hailey Wright, Bryn Lutz and Hannah Harvey each chipped in one. Senior Jillian Wilding posted three saves in the first half before handing the goalkeeping chores to junior Haley Cameron, who recorded five blocks with just two goals against.
Sophomore utility Amanda Amorosa scored four total goals, including three in her team's 5-1 start in the first quarter. UC Davis managed its only goal of the opening frame when Hansen struck from two meters at the 2:35 mark.
The Aggie freshman combo exploded offensively to start the second quarter. Kohlmoos delivered from set on the first possession to cut the deficit to three, Virgil buried a line drive from four meters out to bring the score to 5-3 a minute later, then the two combined for a goal at the 6:00 mark. Virgil assisted Kohlmoos, again at two meters, to cut the Red Fox lead to one.
Marist interrupted the UC Davis comeback when senior Anna-Lena Hathaway bombed a goal from well beyond the five-meter marker, making it 6-4 at the midpoint of the second. However, Murphy answered with a similar shot on the other hand with 2:42 left, reducing the deficit back to one. Red Foxes goalie Skyler Henry posted her fifth, sixth and seventh saves of the quarter before Houston tied the game with a rebound-putback combination in the final seconds before the break. The two teams locked at 6-6 at halftime.
Both defenses locked down early in the third before Virgil finally gave UC Davis its first lead with her 6-on-5 blast with 3:00 left. Marist equalized yet again, this time on a five-meter penalty opportunity. Amarosa converted the shot for her fourth goal. Senior defender Alison Hamby, one of four local players on the Marist roster, put her team back up with a lob from the five spot with 15 ticks left in the third.
Facing the 8-7 deficit to start the fourth, UC Davis scored four unanswered in a span of about three minutes to reclaim the lead and avoid the upset. Wright scored the equalizer in the opening minute, then forced a Marist dump pass on defense on the opposite end. Lutz scored from long range to give the Aggies their go-ahead with 5:07 left, then Kohlmoos completed her hat trick on a backhand shot from two meters with 4:13 left. Then on the next possession, Virgil picked Marist sophomore Nastassia McGlothin for a steal on the perimeter. The speedy Harvey completed the UC Davis counterattack to bring the score to its 11-8 final state.
Marist drew one more exclusion down the stretch but quickly committed an offensive foul to end the power play. UC Davis defended its lead for the remainder.
UC Davis hosts Harvard and Fresno Pacific as part of an all-day tripleheader on Monday. The Crimson and Sunbirds will square off in neutral-site action at noon, then the Aggies face Harvard at 4 p.m. followed by FPU at 5:30. The set will be UC Davis' final action before breaking for final examinations.
| Marist (5-8) | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | - | 8 |
| No. 11 UC Davis (12-10) | 1 | 5 | 1 | 4 | - | 11 |
GOALS - MC: Amanda Amorosa 4, Anna-Lena Hathaway 2, Alison Hamby 2. UC Davis: Greta Kohlmoos 3, Paige Virgil 2, Allyson Hansen 1, Keelia Houston 1, Sammi Murphy 1, Hailey Wright 1, Bryn Lutz 1, Hannah Harvey 1.
GOALIE SAVES - MC: Skyler Henry 10 (32:00). UC Davis: Jillian Wilding 3 (16:00), Haley Cameron 5 (16:00).
