The ASU water polo team hosted its final home tournament of the season this weekend, as one senior made her final appearance at the Mona Plummer Aquatic Center.

The team won three of its four games, but the loss likely ended its postseason chances.

The No. 8 Sun Devils faced No. 6 San Jose State on Saturday, in what was the beginning of what coach Todd Clapper called a must-win, end-of-the-season rally to save any hope of a postseason appearance.

However, the rally was cut short as the Spartans beat the Sun Devils 19-14.

“There were still some things we did well against San Jose,” Clapper said. “We were finding our teammates and the energy was good. We still scored 14 goals, our defense was just lacking.”

Sophomore Lynlee Smith led the Sun Devils with four goals, and senior Addison McGrath scored an uncharacteristic single goal.

The game Saturday marked the last time the fabled McGrath would take to
the pool in a home game for the Sun Devils.

Clapper said that in a Tuesday practice, McGrath took a hit that caused a concussion, which was not diagnosed until Saturday.

McGrath spent the remaining three games wearing a polo shirt and jeans, watching the team she has led for four years.

“It’s sad because it’s her last game, but she definitely supported us in other ways,” Clapper said.

Throughout the tournament, McGrath could be seen coaching, cheering and motivating the players in the water.

“It was unfortunate I couldn’t play,” McGrath said. “I’m so proud of my team though. They’ve worked so hard, it was awesome to watch.”

Looking back on her impressive collegiate career, McGrath said she’s trying to focus on the good times.

“It was a great experience and I’m trying not to be bummed out,” she said. “I’m thinking about the good experiences I’ve had and all the friends I’ve made.”

McGrath said she plans to finish school and hopefully continue her career in water polo.

In the second game of the first day of the tournament, the Sun Devils took on No. 20 Santa Clara. The game was close throughout, and at halftime the Sun Devils trailed 6-4.

Lynlee Smith to the rescue. The sophomore netted another five goals to help send the game into overtime.

The game then went into a second overtime, when sophomore Nikki Unbehaun scored a goal 45 seconds into the second overtime to give the Sun Devils an 11-10 victory.

On day two, the team took on Cal Lutheran and No. 9 UC Irvine and were victorious in both contests.

The Sun Devils stomped Cal Lutheran 25-6 as Smith again went on a scoring rampage, netting 7 goals. Her performance tied a mark set by McGrath for most goals in a single game.

Game two wasn’t quite the picnic Cal Lutheran brought to the table. Going into the third period, the Sun Devils had a narrow 6-5 lead.

With less than 2 minutes remaining in the game, the teams were tied at 10 when Sun Devil sophomore goaltender Kaitlyn Morris made a circus save, preventing UCI from taking the lead.

With 34 seconds remaining in the game, Smith was open in front of the net, where she received a perfect pass from freshman Mariam Salloum and found nothing but net to the game for the Sun Devils.

“We knew when we recruited her that she would be a top player with us,” Clapper said of Smith. “She played well today. She found her own game and she was having fun.”

As far as postseason possibilities go, Clapper was not as optimistic.
“It’s going to be tough,” he said. “At this point we have two more in-conference road games, which needs to be our focus. We’re playing good polo now, and that’s exciting.”

The Sun Devils will head to Berkeley next weekend to face Cal.

Reach the reporter at jaking@asu.edu