It was a good day’s work for the English speaking nations on the opening day of the Women’s Intercontinental Cup in Lima (Peru) as there were convincing wins for Australia, Canada and USA. The closest game was probably the one featuring Canada and Brazil, and given that game finished with a 10-goal margin between the sides, that perhaps speaks to the level of the opposition. The USA youngsters trounced Colombia, while elsewhere in the first game of the day, Australia routed Argentina.
Today’s Results
Australia 28-3 Argentina (7-1, 6-0, 13-0, 2-2)
Australia: G. Palm, P. Casey 1, B. McClean 2, B. Halligan 6, B. Leeson-Smith 3, A. Andrews 2, C. Andrews 3, A. Ridge 3, Z. Arancini 3, L. Mihailovic 2, T. Fasala 3, S. Hearn, G. Longman
Argentina: N. Stegmeyer, L. Ruiz, C. Leonard, A. Hatcher 2, L. Ianni, M. Baciagalupo, J. Auliel, C. Comba 1, I. Riley, A. Agnesina, A. Baciagalupo, D. Gerschovsky, L. Pereira
The first game of the day was anything but competitive as Australia steamrolled Argentina.
The vastly experience Bronte Halligan led the scoring for the Stingers with a double hat-trick, while there was well earnt hat-tricks for Brigit Leeson-Smith, Amy Ridge, Tenealle Fasala and the captain Zoe Arancini.
Argentina only netted three, partly down to the pressure put on them by their Aussie opponents, but even their coach, Guillermo Setti, would admit that they were nowhere near good enough with the limited chances they got.
It’s difficult to break down how well Australia actually played, as opposed to how poor Argentina were. In fairness, the Stingers pressed well and Argentine chances were few and far between. But the Blue and Whites could barely get out of their own half at times, giving too many reversals or losing the ball cheaply from Australian steals.
In attack, Paul Oberman’s side were incisive and clinical, looking like they could score with every attack. They were simply better today, and the gulf in class was evident from the performance and on the scoresheet.
Brazil 9-19 Canada (4-3, 1-7, 2-4, 2-5)
Brazil: T. Mendes Pregolini, D. Alba, I. De Souza, J. Cavalcanti, K. Belorio, L. Belorio 3, L. Ribeiro, M. Marrani Marques, M. Cardoso 1, M. Palaro Dias 1, R. Moreira, S. Rezende 1, A. Beatriz 3
Canada: J. Gaudreault, Kelly Mckee 1, R. Peiravani 2, S. Cameron 2, A. Amororsa, G. Sohi 4, V. Bakoc 1, D. Guevremont 1, H. McKelvey 1, K. Christmas 2, K. Paul 1, S. La Roche 4, R. Jaffe
Canada were well worth their 19-9 win against Brazil in a decent run-out for David Paradelo and his side. They were the better team throughout and looked in good shape for large parts of the game.
Brazil had a car-crash of a second quarter, but Canada played with more control, and were decisive when it mattered. Brazil had chances, but the Canadians defence held firm, and never really looked to be that stretched.
Gurpreet Sohi and Shae La Roche, who are both enjoying their water polo in Europe at the moment with their respective clubs (Sabadell and SIS Roma), both netted four goals, while Toronto’s Rachel Jaffe had a decent game in goal, making some solid saves.
You could see that Brazil have the potential to push on, but they only showed it in glimpses. Against an experienced Canadian outfit, they had to make more of the chances that came their way. As expected, Leticia Belorio was their main outlet, putting three goals into the Maple’s net, as did number twelve, Ana Mantellado of Newport Harbour.
United States 26-3 Colombia (7-0, 8-1, 3-1, 8-1)
USA: A. Longan, A. Pearson 3, R. Gazzaniga 1, E. Woodhead, G. Rossi 1, A. Knepper 2, J. Bonaguidi 1, J. Flynn 6, E. Ausmus, M. Netherton 2, T. Smith 3, A. Stryker 3, C. Carpenter
Colombia: S. Agudelo, A. Rivera 1, M. Restrepo 1, C. Ortega 1, M. Lastre, J. Atehortua, D. Marin, E. Cadavid, V. Rozo, S. Vanegas, S. Atehortua, A. Correa, I. Chamorra
It was a nice start for Ethan Demato, who is deputising for Adam Krikorian, as he saw his young American side batter Colombia. From start to finish, the USA dominated, hardly giving their South American opponents a sniff. Jenna Flynn led the scoring for the reigning Olympic Champions with six goals, Emily Ausmus one of the many Youth National team members in the side, claimed four goals. Recent UCLA recruit and very exciting prospect, Anna Pearson scored three goals, as did Ava Stryker and Taylor Smith.
There is not too much to say about the match other than the USA didn’t have to work hard for the victory at all. Take nothing away from the young and talented USA squad, but it will be very interesting to see how they react when facing a physically intimidating side such as Australia, or an all-round technically stronger Canadian side.
