The Sun Devils are heading into their most difficult competition and will need cohesiveness to stay afloat

Freshman Maud Koopman passesagainstthe University of Pacific on Sunday, March 20, 2016 at the Mona Plummer Aquatic Complex in Tempe, AZ. ASU water polo won 5-3.

At the midway point in the season, the ASU womens water polo team is sitting high in the rankings.

ASU (17-4)began the season as the No. 5 team in the nation andhave only slightly fluctuatedin its ranking since beginning the season.The Sun Devils have remained at No. 6 for the majority of the season, dropping only onceto No. 7 briefly in early March.

Thus far, the Sun Devils have kepttheir reputation as a top-notch program. Junior attackerLena Mihailovic is currently leading the team with 43 goals, while junior centerAlkistis Benekou just reached the top-10 all-time scoring list for ASU water polo.

The Sun Devils have alsoput together 13 top-25 victories, falling only to four of the nation's best teams in USC, Stanford, Cal and Michigan.

Head coachTodd Clapper said the team isfindingtheir ownrhythm and are changing their practicing styles.

I think we're hoping that we can get ourselves sorted out, Clapper said. We're starting to practice more towards how our opponents are playing rather than what we need to do.

Practice is thekey for ASU to continue itssuccess, however, the chemistry built outside of the water is equallyimportant to creating a cohesive team.

That chemistry is already noticeable across the roster. Everyone has their own strengths and weaknesses, but each playerbuilds off one another.

We have such great chemistry and we've started becoming tougher, Benekou said.

In the coming weeks, the Sun Devils must ensure thattheir chemistry continues to translate in the water.

We have some important games coming up against Cal and others, Benekou said. I think it's going to be that defining moment to decide whether or not we make it to NCAAs.

ASU will face three top-four opponents back to back with Cal March 25, USC April 1 and UCLA on April 8.

Thecoming weeks will undoubtedly be the most difficult for the Sun Devils, butBenekou said she isconfident in the program.

I think we're going to be ready at the perfect time, Benekou said.

Junior goalkeeper Mia Rycraw set goals for the team early in the seasonand not much has changed.

Our goal is to win the NCAA Championship this season, and in conjunction with that, we are working on much smaller goals every day, Rycraw said. Our team already has such great chemistry, but I want this season's teamwork to go even further than last season's.

The No. 6 Sun Devils will head out to California this Saturday, where they will take on No. 4 Cal at 1 p.m.

Reach the reporter at klbroder@asu.edu or follow @KellyB1459 on Twitter.

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