Courtesy: USC Athletics
The score tied up three times in the first half as USC and Hawai’i battled for advantage. The Rainbow Wahine struck first, but Bayley Weber’s first blast of the day locked the Trojans even early on. Paige Hauschild earned a 5-meter penalty shot next, and Tilly Kearns buried it to give USC its first lead of the game, up 2-1 at 5:42. Hawai’i would equalize on a 5-meter of its own two minutes later, only to see USC get out ahead 4-2 on a 6-on-5 strike from Honnie Vandeweghe-O’Shea and a fiery shot from Hauschild at two-meters. In the second period, Hauschild struck off the counter to follow a Hawai’i goal to make it 5-3 Trojans, but the USC offense stalled out next, and Hawai’i capitalized with two 6-on-5 scores to snarl things up 5-5 for halftime.
In the second half, USC made its move. A crosscage sniper shot from Sabrina Garabet tugged the Trojans back into the lead. Mireia Guiral earned another 5-meter for the Trojans, with this one deposited by Weber, giving USC a 7-5 advantage midway through the third. Hawai’i pulled within one later in the frame, and it was a 7-6 USC lead entering the fourth. There, Hauschild found Kearns for an impressive score out of set, and the Hauschild herself found the upper V on a Trojan power play to make it 9-6. USC would answer a Hawai’i goal with back-to-back blasts — from Guiral and Weber — to get USC well on its way to the win with an 11-7 advantage with three minutes to go.
USC now has some time off from competition, with the next scheduled game set for March 12 vs. Indiana at 1 p.m. at Uytengsu Aquatics Center.
BARBARA KALBUS INVITATIONAL
THIRD PLACE
#2 USC 11, #5 Hawai’i 8
Feb. 27, 2022 | Anteater Aquatics Complex (Irvine, Calif.)
USC 4 – 1 – 2 – 4 = 11
UH 2 – 3 – 1 – 2 = 8
SCORING:
USC — Bayley Weber 3, Paige Hauschild 3, Tilly Kearns 2, Honnie Vandeweghe-O’Shea, Sabrina Garabet, Mireia Guiral.
UH — Lara Luka 3, Morgan McDowall 2, Elyse Lemay-Lavole, Paula Praats Rodriguez, Lot Stertefeld.
SAVES: Carolyne Stern (USC) 5, Bridget Layburn (UH) 5.