BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – This weekend, the 16th-ranked Hoosiers return to southern California for their last away invitational of the season, the Aztec Invitational at San Diego State University. Indiana might experience some déjà vu at the Aztec Aquaplex when they take the pool against No. 11 UC San Diego and No. 20 San Diego State, as both are rematches from the Triton Invitational last month.
Led by sophomore Kelly Matthews (37 goals, 21 assists) on the attack and Mary Campbell (121 saves) in the cage, the Hoosiers hope to extend a six-game win streak.
2016 Aztec Invitational
Saturday–Sunday, March 12-13, 2016
San Diego State University • Aztec Aquaplex
Saturday, March 12
Game 14: #16 Indiana (9-4) vs. Chapman (3-7) | 1:15 p.m. ET
Game 15: #16 Indiana (9-4) vs. #11 UC San Diego (13-6) | 4:30 p.m. ET
Sunday, March 13
Game 16: #19 Indiana (9-4) vs. #20 San Diego State (6-9) | 12:00 p.m. ET
Hoosier Polo Notes
West Coast Wind-Down
The Hoosiers will cross the midpoint of their 2016 regular season this weekend during their final away invitational of the year. Since the season-opening ASU Invitational, the Hoosiers are 9-2 with at least three wins every weekend. They’ll aim for a strong finish to their road out-of-conference schedule this week, before returning home to host their first weekend in Bloomington at the Fluid Five.
Unbeaten in Boston
Indiana returns to action after a perfect 3-0 weekend at the Harvard Invitational, the host site of the 2016 CWPA Championship. Three high-flying first halves from the Indiana offense and swift execution on the defensive end led to wins over #22 Iona, #16 Wagner, and Siena.
Mary Campbell led the defense with 29 saves and one assist in two starts last weekend, followed by Sarah Myers with eight steals. Once again, Kelly Matthews and Candyce Schroeder championed the offensive front with a combined 16 goals and eight assists.
Challenging Chapman
For the first time this season, the Hoosiers will break the mold of opponent familiarity when they take the water against the Chapman College Panthers on Saturday morning. The Panthers are 3-7 on the season, and they have a knack for offensive distribution: four players have 10 or more assists through 10 games this season.
Turn Back the Tritons
Indiana’s biggest matchup of the weekend will come Saturday afternoon against No. 11 UC San Diego. The Tritons gave the Hoosiers their last defeat, but Indiana has since won their last six games. For UC San Diego, they’ve gone 8-4 since playing Indiana.
The Hoosiers have won two of their last three meetings against the Tritons, with their last win coming at the 2015 Aztec Invitational.
In Search of an Aztec Sweep
Indiana will take aim at their season’s second win against a tournament host when they face the Aztecs on Sunday Morning. In their previous meeting up the road in La Jolla, the Hoosiers came back from a halftime deficit to take an 8-6 win, their second in a row over the Aztecs. San Diego State is 3-4 since their last meeting against Indiana, their only ranked win against No. 25 CSU-Northridge.
Of Note…
• 2015 CWPA Rookie of the Year Kelly Matthews is back for her sophomore season with the Hoosiers. She ranks second in the CWPA in scoring average (minimum 10 games) with 2.47 goals per game.
• Senior goalkeeper Mary Campbell is amidst her second season starting in the cage for Indiana. She leads the nation in saves per game (minimum 10 games) with an average of 9.31.
• Center Candyce Schroeder is IU’s top returning scorer in 2016. The senior has 129 career goals and 60 career assists to her name, and her presence in the pool has opened opportunities for her teammates in the early stages of the season.
• Up next, the Hoosiers return home to host the Fluid Five at the Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatic Center in Bloomington. The home stand will be their final non-conference games of the regular season.
Swimming news courtesy of Indiana Water Polo.