Alex Adamson

PROVIDENCE, RI  -- 2012 Western Division Most Valuable Player Kiki Golden (Jr., Danville, Calif./Monte Vista) scored four times to claim Player of the Game accolades and goalie Alex Adamson (Jr., Coronado, Calif./Coronado) stopped six shots as the No. 10-nationally ranked University of Michigan Wolverines escaped an upset bid by Bucknell University, 12-8, in the quarterfinals of the 2012 Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Eastern Championship at Brown University.

The victory advances Michigan (22-11, 7-2 CWPA Western Division) to a tournament semifinal meeting at 7:20 p.m. on Saturday, April 28 against the No. 14 University of Maryland, a 7-5 victor over No. 17 Hartwick College in another quarterfinal.  Michigan, which improved to 29-7 all-time at the Eastern Championship, including a 23-6 mark under head coach Matt Anderson, is 0-1 against Maryland (10-9 L) to date this season after falling down the regular season in College Park, Md.

In a contest that saw neither team able to muster much in terms of offensvie output in the first period, the contest exploded in the second period with five goals lighting up the scoreboard to start a defensive struggle highlighted by brief glimpses of offensive productivity.

Michigan, which never trailed in the game, opened the scoring 24 seconds into the contest as Kelsey Nolan (So., San Jose, Calif./Leland) won the opening sprint, Bucknell's Taylor Barnett (Fr., Houston, Texas/Clear Lake) went to the corner at 7:59 with an ejection and Golden cashed in on the ensuing man-up chance at 7:36 for a quick 1-0 lead.

The Bison (15-22, 3-5 CWPA Southern Division) responded 64 seconds later as Krystle Morgan (Jr., Rowland Heights, Calif./Rosary) tossed in the equalizer, but Golden struck again prior to the conclusion of the opening quarter by eluding her defender and skipping in a shot with three minutes showing on the clock for a 2-1 Michigan lead after a period.

Lauren Dudley (So., Okemos, Mich./Okemos) cushioned the margin to a pair of markers to begin the second quarter as she lined a shot into the cage at 6:36 to make it 3-1, but Amanda Skonezney (Sr., Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley) halved the Bison deficit with a rising shot that eluded Michigan goalie Alex Adamson (Jr., Coronado, Calif./Coronado) at 4:17 on a man-up chance.

Needing to keep Bucknell at bay until the Wolverines' scorers came to life, the Michigan defense needed to field block four Bucknell shots over the remainder of the period.  On the other end of the tank, Dudley dealt the Bison another two-goal deficit by torquing home a blast at 2:37 for a 4-2 lead. 

The squads both found the cage over the remaining two minutes of the first half as Morgan managed another tally (1:16) and Hathaway Moore (So., Atherton, Calif./Saint Francis) answered for Michigan with 12 seconds on the clock for a 5-3 game at the break.

Nolan tacked on a marker (6:04) to begin the third period and make it 6-3, but the Bison refused to lay down as Becca Shopiro (Sr., Buffalo Grove, Ill./Adlai E. Stevenson) made the counter-point for Bucknell (5:28) to return the spread to two at 6-4.

Michigan began to pull away to conclude the period as Golden and Lauren Colton (Jr., Tustin, Calif./Tesoro) racked up natural and man-up goals at 4:30 and 2:34, respectively, to construct an 8-4 hole for the Bison to dig out of to pose a comeback.

Barnett got to work on the deficit as she blasted a five-meter penalty shot past Adamson with 49 seconds left in the period to set the scoreboard at 8-5 with eight minutes of action to go.

The key to the game occurred in the first four minutes of the final period as the Wolverines kept pace with Bucknell's scorers allowing a man-up goal by Skonezney (6:58) and a regular strike courtesy Julianne Valdes (So., Miami, Fla./Gulliver Prep) (6:15) were matched by tallies by Colton (7:34) and Nolan (4:18) to keep the lead at three-goals.

Nolan and Golden closed out the contest with man-up (3:31) and regular (2:34) goals, respectively, to push the margin to 12-7 before Morgan finished out the scoring with an advantage score with one second left on the game clock.

For Bucknell, Morgan led the way with a hat-trick.  Skonezney added a pair of strikes, while goalie Rena Heim (So., Mohnton, Pa./Governor Mifflin) stopped nine shots.

The Bison will next be in action at 12:40 p.m. on April 28 in a clash with Hartwick for a berth in the fifth place game.

A five-time Eastern Champion with victories in 2002, 2005, 2008, 2009 and 2010, the Maize & Blue will seek to appear in its ninth title tilt over the past 11-years when it faces Maryland as Michigan has missed out on only the 2003 (Indiana University vs. Brown University) and 2007 (Hartwick vs. Princeton University) title games.

Michigan Goals: Kiki Golden (4); Kelsey Nolan (3); Lauren Colton (2); Lauren Dudley (2); Hathaway Moore

Bucknell Goals: Krystle Morgan (3); Amanda Skonezney (2); Becca Shopiro; Julianne Valdes; Taylor Barnett

Saves: Michigan - Alex Adamson (6) ; Bucknell - Rena Heim (9)

Exclusions: Michigan - 10 ; Bucknell - 5

Advantage Opportunities: Michigan - 3-for-5 ; Bucknell - 4-for-10

Sprints: Michigan - 2-for-4 (First, Second) ; Bucknell - 2-for-4 (Third, Fourth)

Cards: None

Officials: Josh Kratz, Hadi Farid 

Bucknell University's Becca Shopiro attempts to shoot over University of Michigan's Kiki Golden

University of Michigan's Lauren Dudley evades Bucknell University's Hallie Keenan