Comeback falls short vs. rivals

The water polo team went into this weekend with a few goals in mind: play tough defense, convert power plays and beat Michigan. The Hoosiers came close to accomplishing all of those things.\nIU hosted the Collegiate Water Polo Association Conference Weekend Saturday and Sunday. The Hoosiers opened up the weekend with a match against Slippery Rock.\nAs in the past, the Hoosiers dominated Slippery Rock 16-7 thanks to four goals apiece from freshman Krista Peterson and sophomore Melissa Pietras.\nIU took on No. 15 Michigan on Saturday. The Wolverines jumped out to a quick start, netting four goals in the first quarter. The Hoosiers responded and only allowed three goals the rest of the game, but the early deficit was too much to make up. IU lost 7-5.\n"There were a few unlucky calls in the first (quarter)," freshman Sharna Nelson said. "It takes a good team to come back from that."\nNelson led the Hoosiers with two goals. The team might have netted more than five goals had so many shots not hit off the posts. Head coach Barry King said those are the breaks of the game.\n"We got into a spurt where we shot the ball well. Then it went away," he said. "If we had a foot of space on those shots, we win by four goals. \n"We had a boatload of opportunities but couldn't convert. We just didn't shoot the ball well."\nBut the Hoosiers did get shots, and that pleased Nelson.\n"The important thing is that we generated opportunities," Nelson said. "We just need to polish our shooting."\nThe Hoosiers had a quick opportunity to bounce back after the defeat with two early morning matches Sunday. They opened the day against Mercyherst.\nIU did rebound and defeated Mercyherst 15-2. Junior Ginger Wang scored three goals for the Hoosiers. In the second match of the morning, IU defeated Gannon 12-6. Pietras was the top scorer again with four goals.\nIn their final match Sunday, the Hoosiers dominated Penn State Behrend 19-5. The Hoosiers (15-12, 7-1 CWPA) jumped out to an early 5-0 lead and never looked back. Senior Molly Fonner scored four goals, and senior Kirsten Mayberry came out from her goalkeeper position to score her first career goal.\n"The teams we played today are newer teams, so they aren't as competitive," Fonner said. "We were able to rotate a lot. We worked on refining our skills today."\nKing was more impressed with the way his team passed the ball around.\n"They demonstrated a way to share the ball today," King said. "They looked for the open people. It was nice to see. We need to learn how to stick the ball. We just have to finish when we create."\nThe Hoosiers will take a weekend off before traveling to the CWPA Southern Division Championships in Villanova, Penn. That event will take place April 19-21.