No. 17 Hoosiers sweep weekend

After starting the season off with seven straight losses to ranked opponents, the No. 17 IU water polo team capped a three-game sweep this weekend at the Fluid Five tournament in Bloomington.\nThe Hoosiers have now won 13 of their last 14 games, including a second consecutive victory against No. 16 University of Michigan Saturday.\nA last-minute, 6-5 win versus the Wolverines Saturday and victories against Wagner University (13-9) and Marist University (12-6) the next day put the Hoosiers at 17-8 on the season.\n"In the last month, we've been doing nothing but get \nbetter and this weekend was more of a confirmation of the things we've been working on in practice," IU coach Barry King said. "We executed really well and now these are the outcomes that we are beginning to expect."\nAgainst Michigan, the Hoosiers found themselves in a back-and-forth match where IU, after giving up the game-tying goal with 2:08 to go, made the final blow on a goal from junior Brooke Zimmerman, less than 30 seconds later.\nPrior to the game winner, the Hoosiers gained a power play, prompting King to take a \ntimeout.\n"The timeout helped us to figure out what we need to focus on, and it helps us to collect our thoughts so we are able to execute the right play," added sophomore goalie Jackie Pyrz.\nUsing the power play to her advantage, Zimmerman moved toward the center of the pool, where she took a pass from junior Kristin Zernicke, and fired a shot into the back of the net.\nThe game-winner for Zimmerman also gave her a hat trick on the day, her eighth of the \nseason.\nWhile Zimmerman provided the offensive boost for the Hoosiers against Michigan, Pyrz kept the Hoosiers in the game with 10 saves, two of which occurred during Wolverine \npower plays.\nThe next day, the Hoosiers extended their win streak to four games with wins against Wagner and Marist. The two victories put the Hoosiers at 17-8 on the season.