One week after upsetting No. 8 UC Santa Barbara, the ASU water polo team crushed No. 9 San Jose State 7-1 on Sunday at the Mona Plummer Aquatic Center.
The win gave the No. 17 Sun Devils a weekend split following a 6-3 loss to No. 3 Stanford on Saturday.
Led by sophomore Ashley Bower, the Sun Devils scored seven unanswered goals to lock up the win
"We had something to prove today and we proved it," said Bower, who scored two goals in the win. "Last year [San Jose State] beat us twice, so this win is really sweet."
Freshman Katy Lawlor and sophomore Katie Hedley also scored two goals for ASU (7-13, 3-6 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation).
Freshman goalie Caylinn Wallace held the Spartans (10-13, 2-6 MPSF) scoreless through the first half and did not allow a goal until the 2:59 mark of the third quarter.
Wallace made 16 saves before being pulled in the fourth quarter for senior Jennifer Sanderson.
"This win is satisfying because we have overcome so much adversity this season," ASU coach Vicki Gorman said. "We're a solid team with an explosive offense and we are definitely peaking at the right time."
All eight of the Sun Devils' remaining games will be on the road beginning at 5:30 p.m. Friday at No. 2 USC.
Gymnastics
There was no single routine that held the ASU gymnastics team back during the South Central Regional, but rather a laundry list of mistakes.
The Sun Devils were overmatched by the consistency of No. 6 Nebraska and No. 8 Michigan.
ASU headed into the qualifying meet as the No. 5 seed of six in Lincoln, Neb., at the Bob Devaney Sports Center with an unlikely chance of finishing in the top two.
Michigan won the meet with a score of 196.6, .3 points ahead of host Nebraska.
Sophomore April Boone was the lone ASU qualifier to the NCAA Championships, on April 21-23 in Auburn, Ala.
Boone was one of the top two all-around finishers not on an advancing team, finishing sixth with a 38.975.
Junior Ashley Kelly, the 2004 NCAA beam champion, was hampered by a foot injury and did not qualify.
ASU didn't have to count a fall the entire meet, but the deductions continued to add up.
"We didn't have to count a fall," coach John Spini said. "We just looked rough."
Kelly was not alone. Senior Kari Muth, junior Lauren Powell and Boone all counted boundary deductions on floor.
Husker freshman Emily Parson won the all around with a 39.525.
Women's tennis
The ASU women's tennis team is peaking at the right time, securing its second upset in as many weeks.
The Sun Devils recorded their third straight victory on Saturday, defeating No. 21 Washington at the Whiteman Tennis Center.
ASU was coming off of a 7-0 shut out victory over Washington State on Friday.
The No. 21 doubles team of senior Lauren Colalillo and sophomore Kady Pooler started the match defeating junior Dinka Hadzic and senior Dea Sumantri 8-2
Individual wins for the Sun Devils included Pooler, senior Joslynn Burkett, freshman Jessica Leitch and sophomore Rebecca Rankin.
ASU (9-7, 4-3 Pac-10) remains poised heading into their final regular-season match, hosting intrastate rival UA on Saturday.
Men's tennis
The ASU men's tennis team dropped their Sunday match with No. 12 Washington 6-1, falling to 7-12 on the season and 1-5 in Pac-10 play.
ASU junior Ryan McBride won the lone point for the Sun Devils, defeating freshman Andy Kuharszky 6-4, 6-4.
The team concludes the regular season in Tucson on Saturday against UA.
Track and field
The ASU track and field team found multiple levels of success in their weekend at the Texas Relay in Austin, with the throwers leading the way.
Senior Julia Pedersen, junior Jennifer Kowacz, and redshirt freshman Jessica Pressley all posted regional qualifying marks in the shot put, with Pressley taking second place overall.
Sophomore Brandon Glenn finished seventh overall in the pole vault with a mark of 17 feet, 4.5 inches, tying for second best in ASU history.
On the track, the men's 4x400m relay team finished second to national powerhouse Florida for the second time this year.
Reporter Tom Kelley contributed to this story.
Reach the reporters at brian.knapp@asu.edu and kimberely.a.taylor@asu.edu.
