No. 1 UCLA Rallies to Down No. 5 Hawai'i, 12-10

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IRVINE, Calif. -- No. 1 UCLA (18-0) used a strong defensive quarter in the third and potent offensive quarter in the fourth to defeat No. 10 Hawai'i (8-3), 12-10, on Saturday afternoon in the semifinals of the Kalbus Cup at UC Irvine's Anteater Aquatics Complex. The Bruins improved to 54-3 all-time against Hawai'i. UCLA has the longest active winning streak in the nation at 18 games and is off to its best start in 14 years when the 2008 Bruins won all 33 games en route to their fourth-straight NCAA Championship.

The Bruins were led by redshirt senior Maddie Musselman, who had game-highs of five goals and three assists for eight total points. She also had one field block, one steal, and won all four sprints against the Rainbow Wahine. Freshmen Molly Renner and Emma Lineback scored two goals apiece. Lineback also added an assist for three total points.

Redshirt junior goalkeeper Georgia Phillips got the start in the cage and went the distance, recording 10 saves while allowing 10 goals.

Lucia Gomez de la Puente led Hawai'i with five total points (three goals and two assists).

PERIOD ONE
> Hawai'i outscored UCLA 3-2 in the opening period.
> After UH got the opening goal (7:04), Musselman scored her first on a power play to tie it at 1-1 (6:26).
> Then after another goal by the 'Bows (5:55), Musselman converted a penalty shot (5:35), drawn by senior Ava Johnson, to knot if up at 2-2.
> UH's de la Puente ended the scoring in the first frame with a strike from the front court (5:17) to give Hawai'i a 3-2 lead after one.
 
PERIOD TWO
> The Bruins turned the table on the 'Bows to win the second period, 3-2.
> Lineback scored her first on a power play to open the scoring in the second quarter (6:22) to tie it at 3-3.
> After UH reclaimed the lead with an exclusion goal (4:27), senior Val Ayala answered with a 6-on-5 goal (4:06) to tie it at 4-4.
> The Bruins took their first lead of the game when freshman Nicole Struss scored on a counter (2:21).
> But it was short-lived as UH scored from two meters just 20 seconds later (2:01) to end the scoring in the first half.
> UCLA was tied with Hawai'i, 5-5, at the break.
 
PERIOD THREE
> The Bruins outscored Hawai'i in the third period, 3-1.
> Musselman opened the scoring in the third with a power play goal that completed her hat trick (7:03) to put the Bruins up 6-5.
> Then Renner scored her first to give the Bruins the first two-goal lead of the game (5:13) at 7-5.
> After a goal by UH (2:55), Renner's second strike from the front court (1:20) ended the scoring in the period with UCLA taking an 8-6 advantage into the final frame.

PERIOD FOUR
> Both teams battled to a 4-4 draw in the fourth frame to provide the 12-10 final score.
> After the 'Bows opened the scoring with a goal (7:00), Lineback struck from the front court (6:40) to push the lead back to two at 9-7.
> Another goal for UH (5:44) was answered by Musselman's fourth of the game (4:25) to keep the two-goal advantage.
> Then Musselman's fifth came on a power play (2:54) to give UCLA the first three-goal lead of the game for either team.
> But Hawai'i would not go away without a fight, scoring back-to-back goals (2:22 and 0:52) to make it a one-goal lead for UCLA at 11-10.
> That's when senior Ava Johnson stepped up, drawing an exclusion with 0:39 remaining and scoring an insurance goal on the ensuing power play (0:29) to end the scoring for the game.

UP NEXT
The Bruins will face the winner No. 2 USC and No. 4 Stanford in the championship game of the Kalbus Cup tomorrow (Feb. 27) at 1:00 p.m. PT.

No. 5 Hawai'i vs. No. 1 UCLA (Kalbus Cup - Semifinals)

6x5 - UCLA - 6/7 - UH - 3/10
Penalties - UCLA - 1/1 - UH - 0/1

UH Goals: Lucia Gomez de la Puente 3, Paula Prats Rodriguez 2, Morgan McDowall 2, Lara Luka 1, Libby Gault 1, Olivia Kistler 1
UH Saves: Bridget Layburn 3

UCLA Goals: Maddie Musselman 5, Emma Lineback 2, Molly Renner 2, Val Ayala 1, Ava Johnson 1, Nicole Struss 1
UCLA Saves: Georgia Phillips 10