Indiana University Athletics
HOOSIERS WIN! NCAA BOUND!
4/27/2003 12:00:00 AM | Women's Water Polo
For the first time in the six-year history of the Indiana University water polo program, the Hoosiers won the Collegiate Water Polo Association Eastern Championships and earned the coveted east-coast berth to the NCAA Final Four.
No. 13 Indiana defeated Brown in the championship final, 7-5, with impressive performances from Krista Peterson and Jessica Goldner. Peterson scored five of the Hoosiers seven goals and earned Eastern Championships Most Valuable Player for her efforts.
Goldner, who had a school-record tying performance against Princeton Saturday night in the semi-finals, stopped 11-of-19 shots, including many tough blocks down the stretch.
"This was an unbelievable team performance that culminated a season of hard work and dedication," said a soaked Indiana head coach Barry King, after being thrown in the pool. "This was our goal from the beginning. This is what we worked for."
King went on to add about the amazing performance the Eastern Championships MVP.
"Obviously, Krista Peterson had the game of her career, scoring five goals in this setting. But she was the end result of a lot of great work in front of her."
In the first period, Brown took the lead at the opening gate, as Tori Barbata froze Goldner in the net on a 6-on-5 advantage, and slipped one passed her at the 6:25 mark. Peterson would then take over the game, scoring the next three Hoosier goals to give IU a 3-1 lead after one.
That lead would not last long as Brown answered back at the start of the second quarter with two goals. The Bears tied the game at 3-3, with goals from Diana Livermore and Melissa Iagulli. Stanford would then answer to put the Hoosiers back on top at the 4:12 mark in the second.
Stanford battled for position in two meters, called for the ball, turned her opponent around, and found the upper-left shelf for the score.
Three minutes later, after Melissa Pietras was kicked out, Brown used its first timeout to set up its power play. Iagulli converted on the Bears advantage, tying the game 4-4. Immediately after the goal, IU would earn the man-up advantage, but failed to convert, leaving the score tied at halftime.
At the 3:22 mark of the third period, Peterson, from the top of the key, netted her fourth goal of the game, putting the Hoosiers back on top, 5-4. Just one minute later, Peterson assisted Emily Schmitt on a power play, giving IU the two-goal lead.
Brown's Jeanie Ward-Waller then scored on a beautiful low skip shot at 0:51 to put the Bears within one.
But just as all fairy tales have a happy ending, Peterson netted the Hoosiers seventh and final goal of the game with one minute expired in the fourth.
Peterson and Stanford earned first team all-tournament accolades, while Goldner was named second-team goalkeeper.
Indiana will now make its first NCAA Championship appearance, May 10-11, at UC-San Diego in La Jolla, California.
Stayed tuned to IUHOOSIERS.com for more on today's Eastern Championship final and in the weeks to come leading to the NCAA Championships.
