Women’s Water Polo – The Stanford Daily https://stanforddaily.com Breaking news from the Farm since 1892 Thu, 13 Apr 2023 06:12:23 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.3 https://stanforddaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/cropped-DailyIcon-CardinalRed.png?w=32 Women’s Water Polo – The Stanford Daily https://stanforddaily.com 32 32 204779320 Trojans attack: Women’s water polo loses its first game of the season to USC https://stanforddaily.com/2023/04/08/trojans-attack-womens-water-polo-loses-its-first-game-of-the-season-to-usc/ https://stanforddaily.com/2023/04/08/trojans-attack-womens-water-polo-loses-its-first-game-of-the-season-to-usc/#respond Sun, 09 Apr 2023 05:58:37 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1225023 No. 1 Stanford is winless no more after losing to No. 2 USC. The Cardinal put on a brave fight in the first three quarters before letting the game slip away to the Trojans, 17-12. 

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No. 1 Stanford (16-1, 3-1 MPSF) is winless no more after losing on the road against No. 2 USC (22-1, 4-0 MPSF). The Cardinal put on a brave fight in the first three quarters before the game — and their 16-match winning streak — ultimately slipped away to the Trojans, 17-12.

USC started off strong, scoring three goals back-to-back without letting Stanford get into the game. This was until the Cardinal caught up with two goals from freshman driver Jenna Flynn. Stanford strengthened its defense by the end of the first quarter. They then trailed 3-2, only one goal behind USC.

Junior driver Jewel Roemer and redshirt senior 2-meter Aria Fischer scored in the second quarter, alongside a penalty goal from Flynn, bringing Stanford back in the game. But USC still managed to challenge the Cardinal offense, as junior goalkeeper Maya Ativial formed a wall between the posts. She totaled eight blocks and one steal throughout the game. The second quarter ended in a 6-6 tie, as the two teams remained neck and neck.

But Stanford’s defense weakened during the third quarter, allowing the Trojans to double their point total. The Cardinal still scored a total of five goals, two of these goals being penalty conversions by Roemer and redshirt junior driver Ryann Neuschel. Despite making USC struggle in the first couple of minutes, Stanford had let its guard down by the end, resulting in a 12-11 lead for the Trojans.

Despite entering the fourth quarter trailing by only 1 point, Stanford came up short and let USC score six more goals before the contest’s end. The Trojan defense proved stifling for the Cardinal — only Roemer managed to score another goal — and resulted in the first loss of the season for Stanford. The final buzzer sounded with USC firmly in control, as the Trojans won the day, 17-12.

Stanford will return home to face No. 20 San Jose State (12-15, 0-3 MPSF) on April 16. The game is scheduled for 12:00 p.m. PT next Sunday.

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Women’s waterpolo remains undefeated after high-caliber tournament weekend https://stanforddaily.com/2023/02/07/womens-waterpolo-remains-undefeated-after-high-caliber-tournament-weekend/ https://stanforddaily.com/2023/02/07/womens-waterpolo-remains-undefeated-after-high-caliber-tournament-weekend/#respond Wed, 08 Feb 2023 06:36:14 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1220693 The defending national champions dominated their opponents at the Stanford Invitational over the weekend, going 3-0.

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No. 1 Stanford women’s water polo (6-0, 0-0 MPSF) dominated their opponents at the Stanford Invitational over the weekend, held at the Avery Aquatic Center. Storming through their trio of matches with a 3-0 overall record, the Cardinal beat out No. 10 Arizona State (5-3, 0-0 MPSF), No. 6 Michigan (6-5, 0-0 CWPA) and No 4. Cal (7-2, 0-0 MPSF) to take first in the tournament.

In their opening game – a high-stakes matchup against the Sun Devils – the Cardinal responded quickly to ASU’s strong start with a penalty shot conversion by freshman driver Jenna Flynn. Flynn continued to lead the team with a hat trick in the third quarter, helping Stanford score six consecutive goals. Junior driver Jewel Roemer helped as well, with two goals and impenetrable defense, while junior goalie Maya Atvial finished the game with 14 saves. Stanford, propelled by solid defense, ended on top 12-8. 

That same day, the Cardinal faced the Michigan Wolverines, but sent them back to Ann Arbor, Mich. after a dominant victory. Junior driver Ryann Neuschul set the tone early with three goals in the first quarter alone, giving the Cardinal a 5-2 lead. 

The second quarter featured impressive goals from senior 2MD Sophie Wallice, junior 2MD Skyler Jones, senior 2-Meter Aria Fischer and freshman 2-Meter Maggie Hawkins, further cementing Stanford’s lead. After some more back-and-forth play, the Cardinal ended the game in convincing fashion 14-4, thanks in part to Neuschul and senior driver Katie Lyons’ hat tricks. This win set up a final showdown against Berkeley.

The next day, the Cardinal defeated their Bay Area rival 14-8, further demonstrating why they are the defending national champions

Flynn – in her sixth collegiate game so far – scored four goals, an impressive feat by any player, let alone a freshman. As the seconds ticked closer to the end of the half, Jones shot a beautiful goal to the top-right corner of the cage, securing the lead for the Cardinal. 

In the second quarter, Atvial’s notable save against a penalty shot increased the pace of the game, benefiting Stanford. Atvial performed well throughout, blocking a total of 10 shots. 

The team was unfazed by Berkeley timeouts and maintained the pace of the game to secure their 11th win in 12 matches against the Golden Bears since 2018.

The Cardinal will aim to continue their winning streak as they take part in the Aggies Invite in Davis, Calif. against UC Davis (3-5, 0-0 Big West) and the University of the Pacific (4-1, 0-0 GCC) on Feb. 12. Their first match is set to start at 11:50 a.m. PT.

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Women’s water polo defeats USC to earn eighth NCAA title https://stanforddaily.com/2022/05/08/womens-water-polo-defeats-usc-to-earn-eighth-ncaa-title/ https://stanforddaily.com/2022/05/08/womens-water-polo-defeats-usc-to-earn-eighth-ncaa-title/#respond Mon, 09 May 2022 04:44:22 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1202839 On Sunday, Stanford women's water polo capped off an incredible season in a fitting way: with an NCAA title. The Cardinal prevailed in a tight battle against USC to claim their eighth NCAA championship in program history.

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No. 1 Stanford women’s water polo (25-2, 5-1 MPSF) closed out its season in style on Sunday, claiming the NCAA title with a hard-fought victory over conference rival No. 2 USC (20-4, 6-0 MPSF). Through 32 minutes of unyielding play, the Cardinal managed to contain the Trojans, swimming away with a 10-7 win and the NCAA championship in Ann Arbor’s Canham Natatorium.

The matchup presented a rematch of the MPSF title game just a fortnight ago, in which Stanford clawed its way out of a fourth quarter deficit for an 11-9 win. The conference title gave the Cardinal an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament and landed them the top seed. 

In the first two rounds of the NCAA championship tournament, Stanford defeated No. 13 Wagner (35-4, 16-0 MAAC) and No. 4 UCLA (24-6, 4-2 MPSF) en route to its 11th NCAA finals appearance in the last 12 seasons and eighth NCAA title in program history.

Given the two teams’ close match two weeks ago, many anticipated a battle for the 2022 crown. USC 2-meter Mireia Guiral confirmed these expectations with an early goal for the Trojans. Cardinal sixth-year driver Makenzie Fischer responded shortly after with a goal of her own, knotting the score at 1-1. 

Two more goals followed for the Trojans, giving them a 3-1 lead until senior 2-meter defender Chloe Harbilas found the net with 21 seconds remaining in the opening period to bring Stanford within a goal.

USC again struck first in the second period, extending its lead to 4-2. However, a valiant defensive effort allowed the Cardinal to hold off their opponents for the rest of the period. On the offensive end, junior driver Ryann Neushul scored for Stanford, narrowing USC’s lead to 4-3 at the half.

Facing a deficit, the Cardinal knew they had their work cut out for them. Fischer made the team’s intentions known, scoring the first goal of the third period to tie the match at 4-4. The two teams quickly locked into a dead heat, exchanging the next several points. Entering the final frame, the Cardinal held a 6-5 lead.

“In the half break, we decided that that’s not the energy we wanted to put forward,” Fischer said in a post-match interview with ESPN. “And I think you saw a whole new team in the second half.”

Like the third quarter, the beginning of the fourth period was a back-and-forth affair. After USC tied the match at 6-6, Fischer found the cage for her third goal of the game to give Stanford a 7-6 lead. The Trojans answered quickly to tie the match for the fifth time that day.

However, that was the last USC goal Stanford would allow, as the Trojans were stifled by the Cardinal defense. In the final three minutes of the match, the NCAA tournament and its season, Stanford was unstoppable, tallying three more goals to earn the 10-7 victory.

Following the match, head coach John Tanner expressed pride in his team’s composure throughout the tight match: “Each time it felt like the game might get away from us, we really stood tall and made one big play after another.”

Tanner praised Fischer, who led the team with four goals. “It was Fisch,” he said. “Those were amazing finishes late in the game.”

Neushul was close behind Fischer with three goals, along with Harbilas, junior 2-meter defender Sophie Wallace and sophomore driver Jewel Roemer, who each contributed a goal. Fischer’s younger sister, redshirt junior 2-meter Aria Fischer, had a game-high three assists. 

Winning runs in the family for the Fischer sisters, both of whom are Olympians. Their father, Erich Fischer, is also a former water poloist and Olympian who completed his collegiate career at Stanford. His daughters took gold with the rest of the United States national team in 2016 and 2020, and Sunday’s win marked the second NCAA championship for Aria and the third for Makenzie.

Reflecting on her final collegiate match, Makenzie emphasized the role that mentality played for her and her teammates late in the game, citing some advice the team recently received from American water poloist and Olympian Jessica Steffens ‘09. 

“[Steffens] said that you want to make sure that you don’t regret anything when you’re leaving the game, win or lose,” Fischer said. “And I think that’s kind of what we embodied in the end.”

Women’s water polo becomes the second Stanford team to capture an NCAA championship during the 2021-2022 season, following men’s gymnastics’ title in April. The team’s victory caps off a stellar run for the Cardinal and an equally remarkable collegiate career for Makenzie Fischer and the team’s other seniors.

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No. 2 Women’s water polo swims away with victory against San José State https://stanforddaily.com/2022/04/10/no-2-womens-water-polo-swims-away-with-victory-against-san-jose-state/ https://stanforddaily.com/2022/04/10/no-2-womens-water-polo-swims-away-with-victory-against-san-jose-state/#respond Sun, 10 Apr 2022 20:22:18 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1199846 On Saturday, No. 2 Stanford women's water polo defeated San Jose State 15-5. Defense was the name of the game as the Cardinal forced 12 turnovers.

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No. 2 Stanford women’s water polo (17-2, 3-1 MPSF) swam away with a 15-5 victory against No. 13 San José State (11-14, 0-6 MSPF) in its final away game of the season.

For the first couple minutes of gameplay, both teams struggled to find the back of the net, until graduate driver Makenzie Fischer ended the drought with a penalty shot. Fischer’s goal was followed by excellent defense from sophomore goalkeeper Maya Avital and sophomore driver Jewel Roemer. On a power play shortly after, Roemer stole the ball and assisted Fischer for the second goal of the game.

The Spartans responded immediately with a goal of their own to get on the board. However, this did not deter the Cardinal, who proceeded to score three more goals in the opening period. At the end of the first period, Stanford held a 5-1 lead.

After an SJSU shot clock violation early in the second period, Stanford junior driver Ryann Neushul found the back of the net. Soon after, the Spartans turned the ball over and allowed yet another Stanford score, this time by senior 2M Aria Fischer. Less than a minute later, Roemer scored for the Cardinal. 

Near the end of the first half, both teams entered a three-minute cold spell until junior 2M Lexie Rowell scored. The teams entered the break with Stanford on top, 9-2.

The Cardinal shot efficiently in the first half, only missing seven shot attempts. In comparison, San José State missed six shots in the first quarter alone and ended the half with 10 missed shots. Even beyond their shooting struggles, the Spartans could not initiate much offensively against a lockdown Stanford defense. The Cardinal forced six Spartans turnovers in the half.

The third period began with a goal from senior 2MD Chloe Harbilas. Both teams then went back and forth for the majority of the quarter until Neushul dented the twine, kicking off a dominant stretch from the Cardinal defense. Stanford forced two turnovers and a bad shot to close the period, giving the Cardinal a 14-4 lead heading into the final period.

The final eight minutes of play were less action-packed. With Stanford up by 10 goals, head coach John Tanner implemented a stalling strategy, involving much more passing than shooting. The Cardinal still played stout defense, allowing only one goal the entire quarter while forcing four turnovers. When the final buzzer rang, Stanford was on top, 15-5.

The Cardinal’s defense shined in this matchup. Stanford forced 12 turnovers, nine of which were steals. While the Spartans’ defense also notched double-digit turnovers, their defensive efforts could not keep up with the intensity that the Cardinal brought to the match. 

Neushul led Stanford’s scoring attack with four goals on a perfect 4-for-4 shooting performance. Following her, Aria Fischer scored a hat trick while Mackenzie Fischer and junior 2MD Sophie Wallace notched two goals each. Avital had nine saves and a steal as well.

Next up, Stanford will take on No. 14 Indiana (13-12, 1-3 MPSF) in its penultimate match of the regular season. The Cardinal will look to extend their record against the Hoosiers to 9-0 all-time. 

The first sprint will start on Sunday, April 10 at 10 a.m. PT at Avery Aquatics Center.

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Stanford alum lead team USA to victory in women’s water polo https://stanforddaily.com/2021/08/01/stanford-alum-lead-team-usa-to-victory-in-womens-water-polo/ https://stanforddaily.com/2021/08/01/stanford-alum-lead-team-usa-to-victory-in-womens-water-polo/#respond Mon, 02 Aug 2021 04:29:50 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1184089 The game saw Maggie Steffens '17 score her 49th career Olympic goal, breaking retired Italian superstar Tania Di Mario’s previous Olympic record and making Steffens the leading scorer in Olympic women’s water polo history.

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The USA Women’s Water Polo Team came back with a decisive victory in their 4th game of the Olympics against the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) on July 30 after falling to Hungary earlier this week.

Team USA came out strong with an early lead, with Stephania Haralbidis scoring two goals and Kaleigh Gilchrist adding another within the first few minutes. The team ultimately beat the ROC in this Group B preliminary game. Stanford alums, who comprise five of the 13 roster spots, contributed seven goals to the 18-5 win.The victory came on the heels of a surprise loss to Hungary — the American women’s first Olympic loss in 13 years.  

Days after this upset, the Americans rebounded by beating the ROC 18-5. Stanford alum Maggie Steffens ’17 — sporting a black eye and broken nose after being elbowed in the face in the team’s match against China — and Haralabidis led the way with four goals each, with Paige Hauschild adding another three goals for the Americans. Along with a strong offense, Team USA had over a dozen steals, and goalie Ashleigh Johnson contributed 16 blocks and her second-highest save percentage of the Games thus far. 

The game also saw Steffens score her 49th career Olympic goal, breaking retired Italian superstar Tania Di Mario’s previous Olympic record and making Steffens the leading scorer in Olympic women’s water polo history.

Of the 13 players on Team USA, five are current Stanford students and alums. These five athletes made up almost 40 percent of the goals in the USA vs. ROC game and contributed three steals. Along with Steffens’ four goals, Makenzie Fischer (’21)  scored two and Jamie Neushul (’17) added one. 

The five teammates have been to a combined total of 11 Olympics, with Steffens and Melissa Seidemann (’13) attending their third Olympics, Aria (’22) and Makenzie Fischer at their second, and Neushul being the only Stanford alum at her first Olympics. 

Team USA remains in the lead in Pool B, ahead of Hungary in second and the ROC in third, as they fight to win their third consecutive Olympic gold medal. The team will play in the quarterfinals on Aug. 3 against an opponent to be announced. 

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Bent blocks title defense for women’s water polo https://stanforddaily.com/2021/05/15/bent-blocks-title-defense-for-womens-water-polo/ https://stanforddaily.com/2021/05/15/bent-blocks-title-defense-for-womens-water-polo/#respond Sun, 16 May 2021 03:49:26 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1182502 UCLA's Jahmea Bent led her hometown Bruins to a spot in the NCAA Championship game with a 9-7 win over No. 2 Stanford at UCLA’s Spieker Aquatics Center.

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Saturday was all about UCLA’s Jahmea Bent. The senior goalkeeper led her hometown Bruins to a spot in the NCAA Championship game with a 9-7 win over No. 2 Stanford (13-6, 8-4 MPSF) at UCLA’s Spieker Aquatics Center. 

The Cardinal won two of three previous meetings with the No. 3 Bruins (13-4, 9-3 MPSF) this season, including a narrow 12-11 victory on March 27. Bent played all 32 minutes in that contest and only saved five shots while allowing the Cardinal to score 12.

Bent’s showing in March was a far cry from her performance on Saturday. She logged 18 saves on Saturday and held the Cardinal to only seven goals. Her effort was supplemented by an offense that led the Bruins to a 4-1 score in the first quarter.

The Cardinal’s two-meter defenders pulled them back in the contest in the second quarter. Two goals from junior Chloe Harbilas and another from freshman Skyler Jones helped Stanford tie the match heading into halftime. 

Freshman driver Jewel Roemer found the back of the cage twice in the third quarter to keep the Cardinal tied through most of the third, but a score from UCLA sophomore Abbi Hill put the Bruins in the lead 7-6. 

In the season’s final eight minutes the Cardinal failed to build the momentum for a comeback. Back-to-back UCLA goals from Lexi Liebowitz and Brooke Maxson were only answered when senior driver Sarah Klass landed a penalty shot with five minutes remaining. Klass’ goal was the final score for the Cardinal as turnovers on both sides ran out the rest of the semifinal match.

Sunday’s championship match will be a crosstown rivalry battle as UCLA faces the No. 1 USC Trojans (21-1, 11-1 MPSF). The Bruins ended USC’s hope for a perfect season with a 13-6 victory at Spieker Aquatics Center on April 25, the final game of the regular season. With Bent tending the goal, they’ll look to spoil the Trojans’ chances at a title altogether.

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Women’s water polo breezes past Bulldogs in NCAA quarterfinals https://stanforddaily.com/2021/05/14/womens-water-polo-breezes-past-bulldogs/ https://stanforddaily.com/2021/05/14/womens-water-polo-breezes-past-bulldogs/#respond Sat, 15 May 2021 02:23:46 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1182481 The No. 2 Cardinal (13-5, 8-4 MPSF) easily defeated the Bulldogs (13-6, 6-1 GCC) 16-9 in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament at Spieker Aquatics Center in Los Angeles.

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Women’s water polo has its sights set on back-to-back titles. On Friday, Fresno State was simply in the way.

The No. 2 Cardinal (13-5, 8-4 MPSF) easily defeated the Bulldogs (13-6, 6-1 GCC) 16-9 in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament at Spieker Aquatics Center in Los Angeles. Stanford was in control the moment junior 2-meter defender Chloe Harbilas put Stanford on the board with six minutes remaining in the first quarter. Harbilas’s opening goal would be her only score on Friday afternoon, but the rest of the team carried the Cardinal through the contest.

Players from all four class years on head coach John Tanner’s squad got a piece of the action. Senior driver Sarah Klass and freshman driver Jewel Roemer each scored four goals while junior driver Lauren Indart and sophomore driver Katie Lyons each added two more.

In front of the net, redshirt senior goalkeeper Emalia Eichelberger ensured the Bulldogs felt her presence. She logged 13 saves and allowed five goals in the first three quarters of the match. At the start of the fourth quarter, Tanner replaced Eichelberger with Maya Avital. The freshman goalkeeper allowed four goals in her eight minutes in the pool, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the lead built by Stanford’s offense.

The Cardinal will face the No. 3 UCLA Bruins (13-4, 9-3 MPSF), who call Spieker Aquatics Center home, in the semifinals on Saturday.

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Women’s water polo begins title defense against Fresno State https://stanforddaily.com/2021/05/14/womens-water-polo-begins-title-defense-against-fresno-state/ https://stanforddaily.com/2021/05/14/womens-water-polo-begins-title-defense-against-fresno-state/#respond Fri, 14 May 2021 17:57:02 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1182472 Second-seeded Stanford women’s water polo (12-5, 8-4 MPSF) will face off against No. 10 Fresno State (13-5, 6-1 GCC) to open the Cardinal’s 2021 NCAA Tournament.

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Second-seeded Stanford women’s water polo (12-5, 8-4 MPSF) will face off against No. 10 Fresno State (13-5, 6-1 GCC) to open the Cardinal’s 2021 NCAA Tournament.

Stanford is seeking to defend its 2019 title and looking to add to its seven total championships in program history, which is tied for UCLA for the most all-time. The team retains much of its 2019 core and all four of last year’s All Americans — sophomore driver Hannah Constandse, redshirt senior goalkeeper Emalia Eichelberger, senior driver Sarah Klass and fifth year driver Hannah Shabb.

Klass leads the team with 42 goals scored on the season, but the team is by no means carried by a single player. Freshman driver Jewel Roemer is a close second with 38 scores, and five total players have more than 25 through the first 17 games of the season.

The winner of today’s quarterfinals matchup will take on either UCLA or Hawai’i on Saturday.

The Cardinal have previously played Fresno State four times, all in the past three seasons, and own a career 4-0 record against the Bulldogs. The last contest between the two teams was a low-scoring 8-6 victory in Feb. 2020.

Head coach John Tanner’s team aims to make it 5-0 following today’s matchup. Start time is 4 p.m. PT from Los Angeles, Calif.

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USC defeats women’s water polo to claim third straight conference title https://stanforddaily.com/2021/05/02/usc-defeats-womens-water-polo/ https://stanforddaily.com/2021/05/02/usc-defeats-womens-water-polo/#respond Mon, 03 May 2021 03:51:32 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1181881 Stanford's momentum wasn’t enough to stop No. 1 USC (19-1, 11-1 MPSF) on Sunday, who bested the Cardinal 9-6 in Tempe, Ariz.

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No. 2 Stanford (12-5, 8-4 MPSF) had the momentum it needed heading into the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) title match. The Cardinal dominated the quarterfinal match against No. 14 Indiana (10-17, 2-13 MPSF) and earned a 13-8 win in the semifinals over a No. 2 UCLA (13-4, 9-3 MPSF) team that was tied with Stanford on the national rankings last week.

But the momentum wasn’t enough to stop No. 1 USC (19-1, 11-1 MPSF) on Sunday, who bested the Cardinal 9-6 in Tempe, Ariz.

The Trojans defense and goalkeeper Holly Parker held Stanford to its lowest-scoring performance of the season, only the third time this season the Cardinal scored fewer than 10 goals.

The last time the two teams faced off, USC forced Stanford to endure a 13-minute scoring drought. The Cardinal endured another one in the MPSF Championship, from the end of the first quarter until the middle of the third. Sunday’s 11-minute drought helped USC turn a 2-1 deficit into a 4-2 lead.

Sophomore driver Hannah Costandse scored her second goal of the game to end the drought with just under five minutes remaining in the third quarter. After a goal from USC’s Mireia Guiral, senior driver Sarah Klass responded by scoring a penalty shot to finish the third quarter. It  was the only goal Stanford’s top scorer would earn in Sunday’s contest, as Parker would deny Klass’ other three shots.

The Cardinal started the fourth quarter only down one goal, 5-4, but USC’s Maud Megens prevented any chance of a comeback. A penalty on junior 2-meter defender Chloe Harbilas gave Megens her second goal of the game to double USC’s lead. Two minutes later, Harbilas scored to keep the Cardinal within one, but Megens immediately responded to complete the hat trick. Megens also logged an assist to Kelsey McIntosh, who scored the final two goals for USC to ice the game. Another goal by Harbilas wasn’t enough to stop the Trojans from winning a third-straight conference title.

On Monday, the NCAA selection committee will announce participants in this year’s national championship. After the cancellation of last year’s championship, the Cardinal are still the reigning national champions, and they’ll look to remain champions when the action starts at UCLA’s Spieker Aquatics Center on May 14.

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Trojans topple women’s water polo in overtime to remain atop nation https://stanforddaily.com/2021/04/11/trojans-topple-womens-water-polo-in-overtime-to-remain-atop-nation/ https://stanforddaily.com/2021/04/11/trojans-topple-womens-water-polo-in-overtime-to-remain-atop-nation/#respond Mon, 12 Apr 2021 04:22:28 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1180967 There was no stopping Denise Mammolito on Sunday. Even though the USC driver first scored with three minutes remaining in the first half, she managed to rack up seven total goals as the No. 1 Trojans (14-0, 8-0 MPSF) took the 12-11 overtime win against the No. 2 Cardinal (6-4, 4-4 MPSF).

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There was no stopping Denise Mammolito on Sunday. Even though the USC driver first scored with three minutes remaining in the first half, she managed to rack up seven total goals as the No. 1 Trojans (14-0, 8-0 MPSF) took the 12-11 overtime win against the No. 2 Cardinal (6-4, 4-4 MPSF).

Mammolito brought the Trojans from a 5-5 tie at halftime to a 10-10 tie at the end of regulation to force overtime. While Mammolito ran the offense, USC goalkeeper Holly Parker anchored the defense. A goal from freshman driver Jewel Roemer at the start of the fourth quarter put the Cardinal up 10-8, but Parker and her defense kept the Cardinal scoreless for the next 13 minutes of the contest.

The Stanford scoring drought was finally broken when junior driver Madison Stamen put one in the cage as time expired in the second overtime period, but it was too little, too late. USC’s Grace Tehaney gave the Trojans the lead three minutes prior and Mammolito immediately added on another goal for good measure. 

Sunday’s contest marked the first time the program has lost three matches in a row since 1998. Head coach John Tanner will look to avoid extending that streak on Saturday for the first game of the Big Splash in Berkeley. The Golden Bears (9-4, 3-4 MPSF) are currently tied with the Cardinal for fourth in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) standings. If neither team moves in the conference standings before the end of the regular season, then this weekend’s Big Splash will be a preview of the first round of the MPSF championships.

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Five goals from Roemer not enough to push women’s water polo past Trojans https://stanforddaily.com/2021/04/10/five-goals-from-roemer/ https://stanforddaily.com/2021/04/10/five-goals-from-roemer/#respond Sun, 11 Apr 2021 05:41:21 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1180939 Freshman driver Jewel Roemer scored to give the Cardinal an early 2-0 lead. That would be the only lead No. 2 women’s water polo (6-3, 4-3 MPSF) would hold as it fell to the No. 1 Trojans (13-0, 7-0 MPSF) 12-8 at Uytengsu Aquatic Center.

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The last time perennial powerhouses USC and Stanford faced off in the pool was on Feb. 23, 2020 when the Trojans ended the Cardinal’s undefeated season in the finals of the Barbara Kalbus Invitational in Irvine.

Fast forward to the first few minutes of Saturday’s contest and it looked like Stanford was about to return the favor. Freshman driver Jewel Roemer scored to give the Cardinal an early 2-0 lead. That would be the only lead No. 2 women’s water polo (6-3, 4-3 MPSF) would hold as it fell to the No. 1 Trojans (13-0, 7-0 MPSF) 12-8 at Uytengsu Aquatic Center.

After Roemer scored her second, USC’s Sabrina Garabet scored two of her own to tie the game before another goal by Denise Mammolito gave USC the 3-2 lead. The two teams would trade goals until the score was 5-4 in favor of the Trojans late in the second quarter.

With 36 seconds remaining in the first half, USC head coach Marko Pintaric attempted to call a timeout without full possession of the ball, resulting in a penalty. This awarded a penalty shot to Roemer and Pintaric’s unsuccessful argument against the referee earned him a yellow card. Roemer didn’t score on the penalty shot, but on her second opportunity after junior driver Madison Stamen corralled the rebound.

The small amount of time left in the first half didn’t stop the Trojans, who managed to pull together two goals in under 30 seconds to leave the score 7-5 in their favor at the break. Though the Cardinal was within striking distance of tying the game in the third quarter, Trojans goalkeeper Holly Parker never let it complete the comeback.

Parker logged six saves during the match, along with her four steals, which tied Roemer for the highest on Saturday afternoon. Farther from the goal, USC’s defense managed to limit senior driver Sarah Klass, who led the team in goals this season with 25 at the start of the weekend, to only one score. Klass was not given any room to operate, as both of her shots were difficult with one bouncing off the post and another quickly knocked down. 

The wind left the Cardinal’s sails in the fourth quarter when USC strung together three unanswered goals to ice the game. Head coach John Tanner, who also received a yellow card during the contest, will look to avoid similar struggles moving forward if he wants a different result for his squad during Sunday’s rematch, which starts at 1 p.m. PT.

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Women’s water polo trades wins with Bruins at Avery https://stanforddaily.com/2021/03/28/womens-water-polo-trades-wins-with-bruins/ https://stanforddaily.com/2021/03/28/womens-water-polo-trades-wins-with-bruins/#respond Mon, 29 Mar 2021 04:42:00 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1180251 No. 2 Stanford women's water polo (6-2, 4-2 MPSF) split two matches against No. 3 UCLA (5-1, 3-1 MPSF) over the weekend. The Cardinal won Saturday's contest 12-11, but the Bruins returned the favor with an 11-10 victory on Sunday.

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No. 2 Stanford women’s water polo (6-2, 4-2 MPSF) split two matches against No. 3 UCLA (5-1, 3-1 MPSF) over the weekend. The Cardinal won Saturday’s contest 12-11, but the Bruins returned the favor with an 11-10 victory on Sunday.

The Cardinal was efficient in its win on Saturday, shooting .522. The team jumped out to an early lead in the first quarter thanks to two goals from junior 2-meter defender Chloe Harbilas, who finished with three goals on both Saturday and Sunday. From there the Cardinal was able to maintain control of the game thanks to a 10-save performance from redshirt senior goalkeeper Emalia Eichelberger.

The end of the first quarter on Sunday left the Cardinal only one goal behind its opponent, 3-4, but the Bruins would pull away in the second quarter. A score from Stanford sophomore 2-meters Lexi Rowell to tie the game at four at the start of the quarter was promptly returned, as three different UCLA players scored four goals to leave the Cardinal trailing 4-8 at the half.

A normally productive Cardinal offense was halted by turnovers. Offensive fouls ended three possessions, while five total takeaways from UCLA’s goalkeeper Georgia Phillips and attacker Lexi Leibowitz stifled most of the other opportunities for the Cardinal. 

Senior driver Sarah Klass, who scored a hat trick in six straight matches, including Saturday’s win, was remarkably cold. She could only find the back of the goal once on Sunday, which was part of a five-goal rally to tie the game, 9-9, in the second half. 

The rally wasn’t enough. Down just one goal with a minute remaining in the Sunday contest, Stanford managed two shots, which were both saved by Phillips to ice the game. 

The opponents won’t get easier for the Cardinal. The team will travel to Los Angeles and face the top-ranked USC Trojans (10-0, 4-0 MPSF) on April 10.

A previous version of this article referred to the UCLA goalkeeper as Jahmea Bent, not Georgia Phillips. The Daily regrets this error.

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Five straight for No. 2 women’s water polo https://stanforddaily.com/2021/03/21/five-straight-for-no-2-womens-water-polo/ https://stanforddaily.com/2021/03/21/five-straight-for-no-2-womens-water-polo/#respond Mon, 22 Mar 2021 03:46:13 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1180095 After dropping the season opener to No. 5 Arizona State on Mar. 6, No. 2 women’s water polo (5-1, 3-1 Pac-12) has rattled off five straight victories, including a pair of dominant performances over No. 13 Indiana (8-6, 0-2 Big Ten) this weekend.

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After dropping the season opener to No. 5 Arizona State on Mar. 6, No. 2 women’s water polo (5-1, 3-1 Pac-12) has rattled off five straight victories, including a pair of dominant performances over No. 13 Indiana (8-6, 0-2 Big Ten) this weekend.

Senior driver Sarah Klass was nothing short of spectacular on Saturday, singlehandedly outsourcing Indiana with a career-high seven goals on 10 shots. Junior 2-meter defender Chloe Harbilas was perfect on offense, scoring three goals on three shots, while sophomore and freshman drivers Hannah Constandse and Jewel Roemer chipped in two scores each. 

The Cardinal scored five goals in each of the first three quarters before taking its foot off the gas and scoring two in the fourth en route to a 17-6 victory. 

Redshirt senior goalkeeper Emalia Eichelberger finished with twice as many saves (eight) as goals allowed (four), before being subbed out for freshman Maya Avital for the final four minutes of the match.

Klass again shone on Sunday as Stanford again rolled to a dominant victory, this time winning 15-5. Klass’ four goals were matched by fifth year driver Hannah Shabb, who found the back of the net twice to open the scoring for either team. Roemer added in another two goals and Constandse finished with one score and three assists.

An 8-0 run with scores from six different players spanning parts of three quarters gave the Cardinal a 13-3 lead it would not relinquish. Stanford’s defense again was strong, as the final line of defense Eichelberger had five saves before turning goalkeeping duties over to Avital for the final frame.

The weekend was the latest strong stretch of play for a team seeking to defend its 2019 NCAA title. Stanford will be tested next weekend when it welcomes No. 3 UCLA to The Farm for two games. Game times are set for Saturday at 4 p.m. PT and 1 p.m. PT on Sunday.

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Hot first period propels women’s water polo to victory https://stanforddaily.com/2021/03/14/hot-first-period-propels-womens-water-polo-to-victory/ https://stanforddaily.com/2021/03/14/hot-first-period-propels-womens-water-polo-to-victory/#respond Mon, 15 Mar 2021 03:39:13 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1179814 No. 3 women’s water polo (3-1, 1-1 MPSF) scored early and often in a 16-10 victory over No. 14 San Diego State (SDSU) (2-12, 1-1 GCC) on Sunday.

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No. 3 women’s water polo (3-1, 1-1 MPSF) scored early and often in a 16-10 victory over No. 14 San Diego State (SDSU) (2-12, 1-1 GCC) on Sunday. 

Sophomore 2-meters Lexi Rowell started the scoring at Avery Aquatic Center on the Cardinal’s second possession. In the next two minutes, senior driver Sarah Klass and freshman driver Jewel Roemer chimed in with scores of their own. Rowell scored again, and another quick goal brought the score to 5-0 in the first five minutes of the match.

Stanford also limited its exclusions, conceding only three against the Aztecs after allowing 13 against No. 15 San Jose State (1-3, 0-1 MPSF) on Saturday. The Cardinal also prevented the Aztecs from taking any penalty shots while scoring two of their own.

Emalia Eichelberger helped maintain the lead going into halftime. The redshirt senior goalkeeper came up with five saves in the first half, keeping the Cardinal ahead 11-5 at the break. Fifth-year driver Hannah Shabb helped protect the lead on offense. She scored a season-high four goals, including two in the first half’s final minutes. SDSU’s Laurene Padilla brought the lead back down to five goals early in the third period, but Klass scored again, earning herself a third hat trick in as many games.

The Aztecs and Cardinal finished the match with more back-and-forth scoring before the final whistle sealed the 16-10 Stanford victory. After the end of the quarter, the team will welcome Indiana (8-4, 0-0 MPSF) for two matches starting on March 20.

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Women’s water polo beats Spartans at home https://stanforddaily.com/2021/03/13/womens-water-polo-beats-spartans-at-home/ https://stanforddaily.com/2021/03/13/womens-water-polo-beats-spartans-at-home/#respond Sun, 14 Mar 2021 04:31:36 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1179766 Junior Chloe Harbilas and senior Sarah Klass combined for nine goals in Stanford's 16-7 against San Jose State on Saturday.

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No. 3 Stanford women’s water polo (2-1, 2-1 MPSF) defeated No. 15 San Jose State (SJSU) (1-3, 0-1 MPSF) in a 16-7 win at Avery Aquatics Center on Saturday.

Junior 2-meter defender Chloe Harbilas got the ball rolling for the Cardinal, scoring less 30 seconds after the first whistle. After a quick response by SJSU, Harbilas chimed in again to put the Cardinal up 2-1 in the first two minutes of the match. Senior driver Sarah Klass picked up the momentum from there, scoring two goals of her own, one just before the end of the first quarter, to give Stanford a 4-1 lead. 

Action slowed down in the second quarter, but picked up when freshman driver Jewel Roemer scored off a penalty shot with 5:13 remaining in the half. Another goal from each team left the score 6-2 heading into halftime.

On defense, redshirt senior goalkeeper Emalia Eichelberger held the line when it mattered. Despite the Cardinal finding itself down a player six times in the first half, the Spartans couldn’t score off a single one. Stanford’s defensive formation stayed tight and kept the Spartans looking for an opportunity that never arose until late in the game.

Three straight Stanford goals in the opening minutes of the third quarter, two by Klass and one by Harbilas, started the second half and extended the Cardinal lead to seven goals with a 9-2 score. Harbilas ended the game with five goals, Klass finished with four and the pair carried Stanford’s offense to victory. 

SJSU battled back for the rest of the third quarter and the front half of the fourth. The Spartans managed to pull within four goals with about five minutes remaining. While still up 11-7, freshman driver Jewel Roemer decided to put the game on ice and scored two goals in two minutes. Together with goals from Harbilas and two other players. Stanford ran up the score to close out the 16-7 win.

Stanford looks to end the weekend beating another pre-modern civilization. It faces the No. 14 San Diego State Aztecs (2-10, 1-0 GCC) on Sunday at 12 p.m. PT.

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Women’s water polo secures 5 signees https://stanforddaily.com/2020/11/12/sports-wwater-polo-signees/ https://stanforddaily.com/2020/11/12/sports-wwater-polo-signees/#respond Fri, 13 Nov 2020 04:35:00 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1175088 Stanford’s women’s water polo team has officially added five new members after the first few days of the Fall National Signing Period.

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Stanford’s women’s water polo team has officially added five new members after the first few days of the Fall National Signing Period. The 2019 NCAA champions signed Bella Bachler (Atherton, CA/ Sacred Heart Prep), Eleanor Facey (Menlo Park, CA/Sacred Heart Prep), Alissa Pinciroli Pascual (Miami, FL/Gulliver Prep), Sophia Sanders (La Jolla, CA/The Bishop’s School) and Shaye Story (Mililani, HI/Kamehameha High School).

The 2021 signing class is comprised of three attackers, one 2-meter, and a versatile player who has experience as both an attacker and a defender.

The newest members of the decorated water polo program will join a 2020-21 team that had hopes to defend its national title and was ranked #2 (15-1, 1-0 MPSF) before COVID-19 cut the season short.

Two of the newest Cardinal athletes, Bachler and Facey, are high school teammates at Sacred Heart Prep, which is just up the road from The Farm. Bachler, an attacker, was a USA Water Polo All-American in 2019 and the captain of a team that won the CIF-CCS Open Division Championship in 2019 and won the Western Catholic Athletic League Championship three times.

Bachler’s Sacred Heart Prep counterpart, Facey, plays 2-meter and brings in an impressive swimming skillset. Facey is a CIF-CCS qualifier in the 500 freestyle, a notoriously gruesome event. During her junior year, Facey helped lead Sacred Heart Prep to the previously mentioned CIF-CCS Open Division Championship in 2019 by scoring 73 goals and shooting 52.5% on the season. Facey has received countless accolades including San Mateo Daily Journal Player of the Year, NISCA All-American and Best Player of the Tournament while competing on the 2019 USA Water Polo ODP Girls Futures international team in Budapest, Hungary. 

Pascual, an attacker, hails from Miami, Florida and brings in a tradition of water polo. Her mother was the captain of the Brazilian water polo team for 15 years and her grandfather played in three Olympic games. Pascual herself is a member of the Brazilian National Water Polo team and competed at the Junior World Championships and the Pan American Games. In high school, she was an NISCA All American and the 2019 Miami Herald Water Polo Athletic Award.

The final attacker in the 2025 class is Sanders. She was a five-time National Junior Olympics All-American and three-time Union Tribute Athlete of the Week/Month. Sanders led her high school, The Bishop’s School, to the CIF State Championship and was also awarded the San Diego Section All CIF Player of the Year.

The final recruit, Story, is a versatile athlete who can play both attacker and defender. In high school, Story won the 2020 Interscholastic League of Honolulu (ILH) swimming championship in both the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:52.96 and the 500 freestyle with a time of 4:58.38. A strong swimming background with the ability to play multiple positions will make Story a great addition for head coach John Tanner. In addition to her success swimming, Story was a Junior Olympics All American and a member of the USA Futures national team.

Tanner will look to integrate these five players early and often after they arrive on The Farm. Last year, Tanner showed a strong sense of how to successfully incorporate underclassmen as Stanford utilized three freshmen with 10+ goals including now-sophomore driver Hannah Constandse, an MPSF All Newcomer and honorable mention All-American.

Contact Jacob Neidig at jhneidig ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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USA Swimming kicks off ‘Saving Lives is Always in Season’ campaign https://stanforddaily.com/2020/11/11/sports-franklin-saving-lives/ https://stanforddaily.com/2020/11/11/sports-franklin-saving-lives/#respond Thu, 12 Nov 2020 05:07:23 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1174867 This October, however, in response to pool closures amid the pandemic, Franklin and the rest of USA Swimming partnered with Phillips 66 to launch the “Saving Lives is Always in Season” campaign.

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Five-time Olympic gold medalist Missy Franklin first began learning how to swim at six months old when her mother signed up for a mommy-and-me class at their local YMCA. 

“She got me in the water right away, as early as she could,” Franklin said of her mother. “And I’m so grateful that she did that. Because for my whole childhood, I just remember having that confidence around the water.”

However, many public pools nationwide are currently closed and have been so for much, if not all, of the summer due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. In May, another five-time Olympic gold medalist, Katie Ledecky ’20, discussed with The Daily how she’s adjusting her own training and Olympic preparation, having been nearly entirely forced out of the water herself.

This October, however, in response to pool closures amid the pandemic, Franklin and the rest of USA Swimming partnered with Phillips 66 to launch the “Saving Lives is Always in Season” campaign.

The campaign hopes to raise awareness for parents and guardians about the importance of swim lessons, which can be taught year-round. The “Saving Lives is Always in Season” website shows users which pools in their areas are open and which currently offer swim lessons.

Currently, the interactive map linked to the website shows the nearest facility to Stanford open is the Los Gatos Swim and Racquet Club. However, the Pool Finder on the site also lists 31 total pools within 10 miles of Stanford’s zip code. Contact information is available for each pool to manually check whether the location is open.

Stanford’s pools are also available to the public at reduced capacity with prior scheduling.

“Ensuring children have access to swim lessons doesn’t disappear when summer ends,” said three-time Olympic gold medalist Rowdy Gaines in a USA Swimming statement about the campaign. “Learn-to-swim programs teach essential life-saving skills that should be available year-round.” 

Franklin pointed to the COVID-19 protocols being followed within and around pool facilities, which include wearing swimsuits to the pool to limit locker room use, symptom screenings upon arrival, social distancing, masks outside the pool and face shields in it and frequent cleaning of high volume areas.

“There are pools open now that have incredibly safe protocols and precautions in place to make sure that it’s the safest possible environment for your child,” Franklin said. “And if you have that ability, get them in the water right now because it could potentially save their lives.”

Franklin herself has been teaching at a SwimLabs location for three months, and “there has not been a single moment where I have not felt safe or felt like my clients were not safe,” she said.

According to the USA Swimming statement, COVID-19 cannot be transmitted through properly chlorinated water. Swimming is also considered to be a low contact risk sport by many public health officials, and both indoor and outdoor pools “are doing everything humanly possible to make it a safe environment for you and for your child,” Franklin said.

“Swim lessons reduce drowning rates by 88%,” Franklin said. “There’s still 10 people a day that drown in this country and 25% of them are children. So it’s a solution.”

The campaign is in discussions with state and local policymakers about the importance of reopening and keeping pools open. Access to pools can facilitate both teaching children how to swim and also providing people the opportunity to receive lifeguard certifications critical to protecting pools and beaches moving forward.

“There is so much happening in our world today,” Franklin said. “But we just can’t afford to lose that conversation about swim lessons and how important they are.”

Contact Jeremy Rubin at jjmrubin ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Hannah Shabb lifts water polo in thriller with Arizona State https://stanforddaily.com/2020/03/10/hannah-shabb-lifts-water-polo-in-thriller-with-arizona-state/ https://stanforddaily.com/2020/03/10/hannah-shabb-lifts-water-polo-in-thriller-with-arizona-state/#respond Tue, 10 Mar 2020 08:07:42 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1165274 The eighth-ranked Sun Devils came to Avery Aquatic Center and almost spoiled Stanford’s MPSF conference opener, with a 5-1 run and another 3-1 run late in the game.

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When freshmen and sophomores outnumber upperclassmen 2-to-1, senior leadership is the element that cements a group of wildly talented but relatively inexperienced athletes together at the most crucial moments.

Fielding such a roster, No. 2 women’s water polo (15-1, 1-0 MPSF) relied on the veterans to pull the team from the jaws of an upset. With 90 seconds left on the clock, senior Hannah Shabb found a window through three sets of Arizona State arms to score her fifth goal of the afternoon and lift the Cardinal in a 9-8 thriller.

The No. 8 Sun Devils (12-5, 1-1 MPSF) came to Avery Aquatic Center and almost spoiled Stanford’s MPSF conference opener with a 5-1 run and another 3-1 run late in the game.

The Cardinal opened strong, with junior Sarah Klass finding Shabb for the first score of the game just two minutes in. Midway through the period, freshman Hannah Constandse rattled the cage. Following a Sun Devil exclusion, Klass made good on the power play to put Stanford up 3-0 at the end of the first frame. Both teams failed to convert a five-meter penalty shot in the second half of the quarter.

More than 10 minutes of game time would pass before the Cardinal would slip one into ASU’s net. At the halfway point of the second quarter, Arizona State called a timeout to regroup. The Sun Devils finally found a chink in Stanford’s armor at the end of the half, putting two past redshirt senior keeper Emalia Eichlerberger.

Out of the break, Stanford was called for an exclusion, and the Sun Devils converted their power play. The five-on-six defense was stellar from both teams, as each allowed just one power-play goal out of 13 total opportunities. The goal knotted the score, but Shabb bumped the lead back to 1 on the next possession.

A flurry of goals came with less than four minutes remaining in the third. Two from each side meant that Stanford entered the final quarter with a 6-5 lead.

ASU’s Amira Van Buren earned a hat trick with a score at the 5:42 mark. Shabb responded with her fourth strike, but then the Cardinal stalled. The Sun Devils put 2 more points on the board to take the lead with just under three minutes remaining. 

Immediately, Stanford called a timeout to regroup. The strategy session was successful, and Constandse scored 30 seconds later. Another timeout was burned at 1:51, and the result was Shabb’s game-winning fifth goal. The performance tied her career best, and bumps her up to second-most goals scored among Cardinal this season with 26. That figure is also a career high for her.

Stanford will be back in action on March 22 when the Cardinal travel to Indiana for their second conference matchup.

Contact James Hemker at jahemker ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Undefeated women’s water polo downs trio of opponents in return to the Farm https://stanforddaily.com/2020/02/03/undefeated-womens-water-polo-downs-trio-of-opponents-in-return-to-the-farm/ https://stanforddaily.com/2020/02/03/undefeated-womens-water-polo-downs-trio-of-opponents-in-return-to-the-farm/#respond Tue, 04 Feb 2020 05:48:33 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1163407 For the second straight week, No. 2 women’s water polo (7-0, 0-0 MPSF) faced off against three top-15 teams, and for the second straight week, Stanford finished the weekend with a perfect 3-0 record.

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New week, new ranked opponents, same results. 

For the second straight week, No. 2 women’s water polo (7-0, 0-0 MPSF) faced off against three top-15 teams, and for the second straight week, Stanford finished the weekend with a perfect 3-0 record. 

This time competing in the Stanford Invitational hosted at Avery Aquatic Center, Stanford defeated No. 11 UC Davis (4-3, 0-0 MPSF) 12-4 in an exhibition match and No. 7 Michigan (5-6, 0-0 CWPA) 13-10 on Saturday. On Sunday, the Cardinal downed No. 6 Cal (6-4, 0-1 MPSF), 10-6.

The rivalry match against Cal can be best described as a game of thirds. Stanford stormed out of the gate, scoring four goals in the first five minutes of play to take a 4-1 lead. The team appeared poised and crisp on both ends of the pool. 

“We were looking to get the first goal and put pressure on them,” junior driver Sarah Klass said. Klass filled up the stat sheet, finishing with four goals, one assist, and two steals.

Two quick goals from Golden Bears junior attacker Brigit Mulder coupled with multiple empty Stanford possessions, however, shrunk the deficit to 4-3 at the end of the first. 

Stanford scored first in the second quarter off a goal from Klass at the 6:35 mark, but the offense continued to stall as Cal clawed their way back, tying up the game 5-5 at the end of the half. 

“We went through that stretch in the second quarter where we got really two-dimensional. We weren’t aware on offense or defense, and that got [Cal] going and gaining some rhythm,” head coach John Tanner said.

Stanford made the necessary adjustments on both ends following the break, blitzing the Golden Bears and taking a commanding 9-6 lead entering the fourth quarter. The Cardinal then shut out Cal in the final quarter to seal the 10-6 victory.

“In the second half we got back into our team attack and team defense,” Tanner said.

This team play on both sides of the pool was a point of emphasis for Stanford coming into the game. Six of the Cardinal’s 10 goals were assisted, led by a game-high two from freshman two-meter defender Sophie Wallace. Klass, senior two-meter defender Kayla Constandse, sophomore driver Madison Stamen and freshman driver Floranne Carroll chipped in one apiece. 

“We’ve been working a lot on setting each other up and making that extra pass,” Klass said. “Everyone was locked in and we were super happy with that.”

Heading into a two-week break before the team’s next games, Stanford still has room for improvement on both ends despite the undefeated start. 

“In one-on-one defense, we’re getting beat both from the perimeter and from the inside. We just need to get ourselves in better positions earlier so that we can anticipate our next positions,” Tanner said.

Against Cal, after allowing three early goals to Mulder, the team made the necessary adjustments and held her scoreless the rest of the game before she picked up her third foul at the 7:35 mark in the fourth quarter, excluding her from the rest of the game. 

“This was a big deal because it took away a lot of their perimeter shooting and then we could collapse back on their inside players,” Tanner said. The result of the team’s efforts, a scoreless final frame, speaks for itself.

Stanford will next compete against at the Aggie Classic on Feb. 15 at UC Davis, taking on No. 18 Pacific and No. 12 Fresno State. Until then, the Cardinal will rest up and continue to progress on offense and defense. Having already downed seven top-20 opponents, including three in the top 10, Stanford has proved itself to be a force to be reckoned with moving forward.

“[The season has] been really fun. There are a lot of good teams and I’m pleased with how we’re competing,” Tanner said.

Contact Jeremy Rubin at jjmrubin ‘at’ stanford.edu

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Women’s water polo hosts trio of ranked talents https://stanforddaily.com/2020/01/30/womens-water-polo-hosts-trio-of-ranked-talents/ https://stanforddaily.com/2020/01/30/womens-water-polo-hosts-trio-of-ranked-talents/#respond Fri, 31 Jan 2020 06:47:38 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1163180 Following an impressive showing at the Cal Cup last weekend, No. 2 women’s water polo (5-0, 0-0 MPSF) will host a trio of games this weekend at the Avery Aquatic Center.

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Following an impressive showing at the Cal Cup last weekend, No. 2 women’s water polo (5-0, 0-0 MPSF) will host a trio of games this weekend at the Avery Aquatic Center. 

Against No. 5 UC Irvine on Jan. 26, despite an initial 3-0 deficit, Stanford stormed back to secure a 10-9 victory. Much like the entire weekend, junior driver Sarah Klass carried a large portion of the scoring burden for the Cardinal. Her four goals were a team-high, and she scored a combined 13 in total last weekend. She was named MPSF Player-of-the-Week on Wednesday for her performance.

Stanford also handily beat No. 12 UC Davis 19-9, and then No. 13 Fresno 10-4, over the weekend. Freshman driver Hannah Constandse’s five goals against the Aggies played a major role in the victory.

Perhaps the most impressive aspect of the team’s most recent success, however, has been on the defensive end. Redshirt junior goalkeeper Emalia Eichelberger finished just two saves short of her career high in the Irvine game. Against Fresno State, this time with sophomore goalkeeper Thea Walsh protecting the net, the Cardinal allowed just four goals on 24 shots. Walsh had 11 saves in the contest.

With recent USA Water Polo Hall of Fame inductee coach John Tanner at the helm, Stanford is no stranger to success. The Cardinal were crowned NCAA Champions last season, which was Tanner’s 22nd title and the seventh in his tenure. Tanner’s career winning percentage at the Farm is now well above .800, and last year he was named the ACWPC National Coach of the Year for the sixth time.

This weekend, the Cardinal will prepare to take on three ranked teams in front of their home crowd for the first time all season. In the past 12 years, Stanford is a career 111-10 on the Farm.

Stanford will battle against No. 11 UC Davis and No. 7 Michigan on Saturday, followed by a clash against No. 6 Cal on Sunday. They continue on a difficult stretch of play for Stanford, as the team has played against four ranked opponents out of five games total.

The tip-off is set for Saturday at 11:15 a.m. PST against UC Davis, followed by Michigan at 4:45 p.m. PST and finally Cal on Sunday at 11 a.m. PST. All games will take place at the Avery Aquatic Center.

Contact Jeremy Rubin at jjmrubin ‘at’ stanford.edu

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No. 2 women’s water polo downs No. 3 Irvine to remain undefeated https://stanforddaily.com/2020/01/27/no-2-womens-water-polo-downs-no-3-irvine-to-remain-undefeated/ https://stanforddaily.com/2020/01/27/no-2-womens-water-polo-downs-no-3-irvine-to-remain-undefeated/#respond Tue, 28 Jan 2020 06:11:54 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1162981 Despite an early lead, No. 3 UC Irvine (4-2, 0-0 MPSF) fell 10-9 to No. 2 Stanford (5-0, 0-0 MPSF) to conclude the 2020 Cal Cup in Berkeley on Sunday. With the win, the Cardinal improved to remain undefeated and lengthen their win-streak to five.

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Despite an early lead, No. 3 UC Irvine (4-2, 0-0 MPSF) fell 10-9 to No. 2 Stanford (5-0, 0-0 MPSF) to conclude the 2020 Cal Cup in Berkeley on Sunday. With the win, the Cardinal remain undefeated with a five-game win streak. 

Stanford initially looked overmatched, as Irvine scored three straight goals to open up the scoring for both sides. The first goal came with 4:37 remaining in the first quarter, followed by another just 20 seconds later. A third goal, at the 2:38 mark in the period, put Stanford into a 0-3 deficit. 

Junior driver Sarah Klass, however, scored with 1:22 left in the first frame to give Stanford momentum heading into the second period. This was the first of four goals for Klass on the day.

Stanford dominated the second quarter to close the gap and entered the half tied at five apiece. Goals by freshman 2-meter defender Sophie Wallace and senior driver Hannah Shabb followed another Anteater score to close the gap to one.

Sophomore 2-meter defender Chloe Harbilas’ score at the 2:00 mark before the halfway point again brought the game within one, and Wallace’s second goal of the quarter with just 0:18 remaining on the clock capped off the Stanford comeback. 

From there, Stanford flipped the script on Irvine, opening the second half with three straight goals of their own. Two of the three came courtesy of Klass, and the third was from senior driver Lauren Bywater.

After the initial scoring, redshirt junior goalkeeper Emalia Eichelberger and the rest of the Cardinal defense effectively slowed the Anteater attack. Eichelberger finished with 14 saves, just two away from her career high.

Irvine was the fourth ranked team that Stanford defeated in their first five games of the season. 

Following a convincing, season-opening 13-5 win over No. 18 San Jose State, the team entered the Cardinal Cup with high expectations. They left with three victories in three games against No. 12 UC Davis, No. 13 Fresno State and No. 3 Irvine. Klass also scored five and four goals, respectively, in the first two contests, to bring her total up to 13 on the weekend.

The Cardinal will play on the Farm for the first time this season for the Stanford Invitational on Feb. 1-2. They seek to maintain their undefeated record against a trio of competitors.

The first game is set to begin at 9 a.m. PST against Indiana, followed by Michigan at 5:15 p.m. and Cal at 11 a.m. the following day. All games will take place at the Avery Aquatic Center.

Contact Jeremy Rubin at jjmrubin ‘at’ stanford.edu

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Women’s water polo starts up 2020 with Loustrong tournament https://stanforddaily.com/2020/01/16/womens-water-polo-starts-up-2020-with-loustrong-tournament/ https://stanforddaily.com/2020/01/16/womens-water-polo-starts-up-2020-with-loustrong-tournament/#respond Fri, 17 Jan 2020 06:58:10 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1162521 On Saturday, No. 2 women’s water polo will compete in the season-opening Loustrong Memorial tournament in San Jose, CA. The team is scheduled to take on No. 18 San Jose State, followed by a quick turnaround with Sonoma State.

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On Saturday, No. 2 women’s water polo will compete in the season-opening Loustrong Memorial tournament in San Jose, CA. The team is scheduled to take on No. 18 San Jose State, followed by a quick turnaround with Sonoma State.

As reigning national champions, Stanford has a lot of pressure coming into this season. Without four of their five leading scorers from last season, the Cardinal will have to rely on their depth if they plan to repeat as champs. Kat Klass ’19 graduated last season, while senior Mackenzie Fischer, junior Aria Fischer and sophomore Ryann Neushul are all taking the year off. The latter three will be training for the national team in hopes of making the Olympics.

With 11 freshmen and sophomores, the team is young and will need guidance from the two returning All-Americans and the three-member senior class. Redshirt junior goalkeeper Emalia Eichelberger, a second-team All-American, anchors the defense, and junior driver Sarah Klass, who garnered an honorable mention, is the top returning scorer.

Stanford has a talented freshman class coming into the program; this tournament will be their debut into college water polo. The class includes multiple Youth National Team members and All-Americans, among many other accomplishments.

The Cardinal will enter the tournament with confidence, having never lost to either San Jose State or Sonoma State. This weekend should be a good warmup to get momentum rolling into the rest of the winter preseason. 

Stanford has tournaments for the next three weekends; the team is participating in the Cal Cup the weekend of Jan. 25 and is hosting the Stanford Invitational the following weekend. The Cardinal will build to big matchups in the Stanford Invitational against No. 7 Michigan and No. 4 California.

Keep an eye out for Klass and sophomore driver Madison Stamen to have a big impact in this weekend’s tournament. The two were on fire last season, as Klass tallied an outstanding 42 goals, and Stamen followed with 31, an especially impressive feat as a freshman.

First sprint against San Jose State is set for 11:30 a.m. PT, and the Sonoma State matchup will follow at 1 p.m. PT.

Contact Natalie Hilderbrand at nhild ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Women’s water polo represented in upcoming FINA Junior World Championship https://stanforddaily.com/2019/09/08/womens-water-polo-represented-in-upcoming-fina-junior-world-championship/ https://stanforddaily.com/2019/09/08/womens-water-polo-represented-in-upcoming-fina-junior-world-championship/#respond Sun, 08 Sep 2019 21:52:55 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1157106 The International Swimming Federation (FINA) Women’s Junior World Championship is set to kick off on Monday in Funchal, Portugal, and four Cardinal players will be in attendence. The U.S. roster includes incoming freshman Hannah Constandse, junior Sarah Klass and sophomore Ryann Neushul, while freshman Floranne Carroll is a member of the Canadian team. The seven-day […]

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The International Swimming Federation (FINA) Women’s Junior World Championship is set to kick off on Monday in Funchal, Portugal, and four Cardinal players will be in attendence. The U.S. roster includes incoming freshman Hannah Constandse, junior Sarah Klass and sophomore Ryann Neushul, while freshman Floranne Carroll is a member of the Canadian team.

The seven-day international tournament is the junior equivalent of the FINA World Championship, which was held in July. In that tournament, the U.S. women claimed gold for an unprecedented third consecutive time. The competition might be better known, however, for the balcony collapse that occurred after the championship in Gwangju, South Korea’s Coyote Ugly nightclub, where American water polo players were celebrating the women’s victory.

The FINA World Championship also hosted other water sports, including the first-ever beach water polo championship. Neushul was part of Team USA’s roster for the inaugural event and helped the Americans to a first-place finish.

The junior version of the water polo tournament, however, is held every two years and features players under the age of 20. The tournament was launched in 1981 for men and 1995 for women. In the 2017 championship — which was hosted in Volos, Greece — Russia, Greece and the Netherlands took home gold, silver and bronze, respectively, in women’s water polo.

Although the U.S. was kept off the podium in the most recent championship, they did win gold in both 2013 and 2015. This year’s tournament will be their shot at redemption and will foreshadow the upcoming talent for the 2024 Olympics

Klass and Neushul are both returners from the 2017 FINA Junior World Championship squad, which finished in fifth place. Caroll and Constandse, however, are newcomers.

At the FINA Junior World Championship two years ago, Klass played in all seven games and scored six times with a pair of assists. Neushul, one of the tournament’s top five scorers, led the United States with 15 goals and tied for the team lead with seven steals.

This summer has certainly been full of travel for the four Cardinal players. All four recently returned from a two-week “sports diplomacy” trip to Chengdu, China and the Tibetan Plateau of Sichuan Province, where they trained, played and engaged in cultural exchanges. And now, for the week leading up to the competition, Team USA has been training in Barcelona, Spain with the Spanish Women’s Junior National Team.

Team USA will compete first in the FINA Junior World Championship in Group A, which also includes Australia, Hungary and Japan. The second and third place teams will both move on into the first stage of the bracket, and the winners of each of the four groups will win a bye to the quarterfinals. The last placed country in each group will be eliminated. Viewers can watch the games through a live stream on FINATV.live.

Funchal, the host city of the junior event, has a population of around 110,000 (a little more than double that of Palo Alto) and is located on the island of Madeira off the coast of Morocco. The city is best known in the sports world as being the birthplace of soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo.

Constandse and Caroll enter the tournament straight out of high school, looking to make a name for themselves before Stanford’s season kicks off, while both Klass and Neushul were standouts in the 2018 season for the Cardinal.

Constandse comes to Stanford from Southern California Division 1 powerhouse Mater Dei, where she scored a team-high 50 goals in her senior season and helped the Monarchs to the Trinity League championship. She was also selected to represent Team USA last year in the 2018 Youth World Championships in Belgrade, Serbia and won a silver medal at the 2016 UANA Junior Pan American Championships.

Carroll attended College Marianopolis in Montreal and competed for the CAMO club program. She claimed three national titles in as many years with her club team. Carroll joined the Canadian Senior National Team in New Zealand for the 2018 FINA Intercontinental Cup. In January, she won gold at the 2019 UANA Cup in Sao Paulo, Brazil and scored in the final against Cuba. This past summer, Carroll was one of over 20 Stanford athletes who represented their native countries at the 2019 World University Games in Italy.

Klass enters the international tournament after being voted ACWPC All-America honorable mention during the 2018 season. She finished third for the Cardinal in goals scored with 41 and averaged 1.68 goals per game. Klass scored in 20 games, including five hat tricks.

MPSF Newcomer of the Year Neushul is probably best known for putting away the game winning goal in the 2018 National Championship to secure Stanford its seventh NCAA title. She was an All-NCAA Tournament first-team selection and was fifth on the team in scoring with 35 goals, averaging 1.40 goals per game.

Contact Cybele Zhang at cybelez ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Stanford water polo helps advance Team USA to 2020 Olympics https://stanforddaily.com/2019/08/12/stanford-water-polo-helps-advance-team-usa-to-2020-olympics/ https://stanforddaily.com/2019/08/12/stanford-water-polo-helps-advance-team-usa-to-2020-olympics/#respond Mon, 12 Aug 2019 23:19:39 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1156719 Team USA women's water polo secured its fifth consecutive Pan American Games gold medal with the help of six current and past Cardinal athletes. The men's team wasn't far behind.

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With the help of eight Stanford students and alumni, USA water polo flaunted its strength this weekend and captured gold at the Pan American (Pan Am) Games in both the men’s and women’s events. These victories cemented Team USA’s standings in the Americas and thus earned each team a bid to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. 

While countries are only able to send an eleven-person roster to the Pan Am Games, which occur every four years, the mix of current Stanford players and alumni accounted for six spots on the women’s roster and two on the men’s. Cardinal players selected for the two-continent event include Aria Fischer ’21, Makenzie Fischer ’20, Jamie Neushul ’17, Kiley Neushul ’15, Melissa Seidemann ’12 and Maggie Steffens ’17 on the women’s side and Alex Bowen ’14 and Ben Hallock ’21 on the men’s.

Though it entered the tournament as a favorite, the U.S. claimed victories in remarkable fashion given that four American athletes were injured just two weeks prior in a balcony collapse at the International Swimming Federation (FINA) World Championship in Gwangju, South Korea. 

Hallock only suffered minor cuts, but fellow Americans Kaleigh Gilchrist, Paige Hauschild and Johnny Hooper were more seriously hurt. Gilchrist, although on the initial roster, was unable to make the trip to Peru given her recent surgery. Hauschild and Hopper both required stitches but still participated in the Pan Am Games, where both scored at least once in the championship match.

The women punched their ticket first, decisively defeating Canada 24-4 on Saturday morning in the tournament final. All six Cardinal women on the roster found the back of the net in the championship game, but 2019 Peter J. Cutino Award-winner Makenzie Fischer had an especially impressive showing, leading the team with six goals. Steffens, a two-time international Player of the Year, added four more points, and Jamie Neushul scored three more. Aria Fischer, Kiley Neushul and Seidemann scored one goal apiece, bringing Stanford’s championship point total to 15, more than any other university represented in the final. 

The victory extended Team USA’s win streak to 59 and gave the American women their fifth consecutive Pan Am gold medal. The women finished play in Lima undefeated with a 6-0 record and outscored their opponents 142-24. Although the Olympic roster has not yet been finalized, all six Stanford women are favorites to be named to the list.

Team USA’s reign continued into Saturday night, when the men’s team secured gold with a 18-6 defeat of Canada. This was the Americans’ seventh-straight gold at the Pan Am Games. And yet again, Cardinal players proved to be the spine of the offense: Bowen and Hallock each scored five. As in the women’s final just a few hours earlier, Stanford had the most goals of any other university represented in the men’s final. 

The 21-year-old Hallock came out strong, scoring in the first minute to give the U.S. the early lead. Just five minutes later, Bowen added another goal during a power play. After a commanding start from the Stanford men, the flood gates opened, and goal-after-goal piled on until the U.S. was up 7-1. Canada attempted to rally but proved no match for Bowen, Hallock and the rest of the star-studded American team. 

“That first half was a testament to how close we are as a team — to fight the whole way through,” Bowen said in a post game interview with Swimming World Magazine. “We played really well, and I loved it.” 

Similarly to the Cardinal women, Bowen and Hallock will likely be chosen to represent Team USA in Tokyo, which would mark their second Olympic appearance after participating in the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Back at Stanford, the men’s water polo season is set to open on Sept. 7 with the Navy Invite in Annapolis, Maryland. The women’s team, reigning national champions, are not in season until the spring.

Contact Cybele Zhang at cybelez ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Women’s water polo heads to China for competition, diplomacy https://stanforddaily.com/2019/06/06/womens-water-polo-heads-to-china-for-competition-diplomacy/ https://stanforddaily.com/2019/06/06/womens-water-polo-heads-to-china-for-competition-diplomacy/#respond Thu, 06 Jun 2019 07:02:04 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1155852 Having conquered Division I collegiate women’s water polo, the premier domestic league in the world, the Stanford team will be expanding its horizon by heading to China for a two-week trip at the end of June.

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Having conquered Division I collegiate women’s water polo, the premier domestic league in the world, the Stanford team will be expanding its horizon by heading to China for a two-week trip at the end of June. While the endeavor appears to be “just another international athletics trip” on the surface, the Cardinal squad is tasked with the diplomatic representation of both Stanford and USA water polo, as well as the country itself, in addition to winning games and sightseeing.

For a combination of reasons, including Stanford’s extremely high level of play and collaborative environment, the Chinese invited the Cardinal to their own facilities before the 2019 Aquatics World Championships.

“The Chinese national team has come to California just about every winter for the last few years, and they have really enjoyed coming here,” Head Coach John Tanner said. “They really enjoy playing in our pool, the level of competition and the camaraderie with our team.”

The Cardinal will travel to Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan province. While in Chengdu, the team will practice alongside the Chinese national team for four days before two official matches. After the water polo, the team will spend a week traveling through the province and learning as much as they can about the Chinese culture. For Tanner, it was a no-brainer to immerse the team in the Chinese culture even though the impetus for the trip had been to just play water polo.

“I think a lot of athletes who have done really well internationally. When they go places, they don’t divorce themselves from the reality around them,” Tanner said. “When you get so enmeshed in just the competitive facet of what you’re doing, you don’t compete as well. When Stanford students have their minds occupied, and they’re in motion, they seem to play mentally and physically faster. So in a lot of ways, what we’ll be doing won’t be much different than what we do in Sanford — just in a in a very different place.”

As far as competition is concerned, the Chinese and Stanford are no strangers to each other.

“We’ve played against the Chinese national team multiple times per year, since I was a freshman,” redshirt junior goalkeeper Emalia Eichelberger said. “I think it’ll be an amazing experience to play against the Chinese team in front of a Chinese home crowd. I don’t think it will be rivaled by anything else we’ve ever experienced.”

Without all the extra layers of Chinese-U.S. relations, the fact that a water polo team would travel to China is already strange. Most high-level teams make the rounds through Europe, which has the highest level of play outside the United States.

“I know most teams, when they look to do something international, go to a place where they would feel comfortable in a culture that is similar and familiar with language that is very accessible,” Tanner said. “We like to think of Stanford as being a home of innovation, so it fits to go to a place where the history, the culture, language, food, everything is so distinctly different. We wanted to step into that and do something that is out of the ordinary.

Due to the extremely high level of water polo in California, the Chinese national team has made extensive trips here that have lasted up to three months over the past few years. This past February, the two squads engaged in an official game, and Stanford came out on top 15-13. It may seem surprising that a college team would be able to beat a national team, but the caliber of play in women’s water polo at every level in the U.S. is simply head and shoulders above that of other countries.

Combine the facts that this year’s national championship team had two gold-medal Olympians in the Fischer sisters (junior Makenzie and sophomore Aria) and China is not ranked in the top five, and now the odds look a little more balanced. Despite the February victory and the NCAA title, the Chinese will be facing a newer, almost assuredly weaker, Stanford team.

The four veteran members of the 2018-19 senior class will have graduated by then, and the Fischer sisters will be stepping away from collegiate water polo for a year as they prepare for the 2020 Olympics. Replacing them will be untested freshmen. The trip will function as a sort of forced bonding for the new team, which will need to have an excellent year if it is to defend its NCAA championship.

“This will be the first kind of building experience as a team going into next season,” Eichelberger said. “That will be a very important season seeing as we’ve lost our four seniors, and we’ll be losing the Fisher sisters as well for the Olympic year.”

“We get to take the new freshmen, so it’ll be really cool to get to play together and have good competition abroad,” junior driver Hannah Shabb said. “We will get the team bonding stuff sort of forced or compressed for two weeks. I think that’ll be really good going into next season.”

For the second week of the trip, the team will leave the pool behind and trek into the mountains of Yading Nature Reserve in the western region of the Sichuan Province. It will also take tours through the Chengdu Panda Base, which is a research center for the giant panda and other rare animals.

“We know it’s going to be hot in Chengdu, and there are challenges with the air quality,” Tanner said. “So we knew we wanted to get up into the mountains where it’s cooler and clearer. And since we’re all the way out there in the west, we wanted to go up in the Tibetan Plateau.”

“Oh, I think I’m the most excited about the mountains,” Shabb said. “Luckily, as juniors, we got to have a say in what we do the week after training, and I was really pushing for these mountains. It just looks so beautiful, and I don’t know that I [will] ever go there at another point.”

Besides representing the athletic prowess of Stanford University and seeing giant pandas, the trip will play just as important a role in the diplomatic efforts between the two countries.

“At the beginning, I didn’t really realize the scope of importance the trip would have, especially to some of these people that are really high up and have very large parts in U.S.-China relations,” Shabb said. “We have to know how to carry ourselves while we’re there.”

When all other forms of communication or negotiation may be failing, sports is a constant that often transcends political barriers. Stanford already has an oft-forgotten history in sports diplomacy with China.

In April of 1972, the Chinese national table tennis team traveled to Stanford as part of a goodwill diplomatic trip to the U.S. Including a showcase in front of a packed Maples Pavilion audience, the Chinese team’s trip was the closing bookend of ping-pong diplomacy. In 1971, the U.S. team was invited into China, and the members were the first American delegation in Beijing since 1949. The trip paved the way for President Nixon’s famous trip to China in February of 1972, which marked the restart of Chinese-American relations in the second half of the 20th century.

“We’ve talked about the ping-pong diplomacy, and how much importance that had,” Shabb said. “So this is kind of like extending that way down the line. In this day and age,  just maintaining any sort of relationship with China is really important, especially through sports. Getting to be a part of that is really pretty cool.”

With this backdrop, the team reached out to various professors at Stanford who could give context to the country they would visit, the cultures they would come across and the people they would interact with. Leading up to the trip, the team will attend seven seminars given by faculty from the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies. The presentations range from the history of diplomatic relations to the culture of the more than 800 million people who live in rural China.

“I would say that the main goal of these seminars is generally to get us to realize the sheer vastness and diversity and difference between China and the United States,” Eichelberger said. “We need to throw out all preconceived notions of what we think it’ll be like. Learning about China, it’s a very unique country, and it’s something that I don’t think any of us have ever been witness to before.”

Former ambassador to Afghanistan Karl Eikenberry has been working closely with the team to prepare for the trip. Eikenberry, who is Director of the U.S.-Asia Security Initiative, delivered a seminar on China’s foreign policy to the team. His wife Ching Eikenberry followed with her own, more beloved session on Chinese characters and culture, featuring a section on dumpling making.

The team will conclude its study of China by having each member deliver a presentation about a specific area of interest. While they may sound like any other school presentation, these talks, which are about ten minutes, are standard procedure for all State Department personnel before going abroad.

“It definitely feels like I’m being treated like an ambassador,” Eichelberger said. “One of the things we’re going to be doing in our training camp are these presentations. It’s a common practice when the State Department sends diplomats abroad. They do what’s called an area study about a specific topic or region or place. So each one of us will be doing one of those and giving a 10-15 minute presentation to our team.”

All of these lessons will have real-world consequences for the girls on the team, as both Eichelberger and Shabb stressed that whoever knows the most Mandarin will not be put in a middle seat on the 14 hour flight from SFO to Chengdu.

“These guys like to compete, and if seat allocation is based on who can convince the gate agent in Mandarin to give them a better seat, then all the better,” Tanner said. “To me, the biggest part of travel is showing respect for and engaging in a local culture. It makes the whole trip so much more rewarding.”

Outside of the mountains and spicy foods and water polo matches, there is still a greater meaning to the trip. If there is just one thing Tanner wants his team to take away from the trip, it is to be cognizant of how big the world is, and how much there is to learn about other cultures and people.

“I want them to have an appreciation for how much more we all have to learn,” Tanner said. “There are things that seems so distant and would be easy to just keep at that distance, but they can give you a really strong sense of appreciation for what we have and of awe for how big the world is.”

Contact James Hemker at jahemker ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Fischer, Hallock awarded Peter J. Cutino Award https://stanforddaily.com/2019/06/05/fischer-hallock-awarded-peter-j-cutino-award/ https://stanforddaily.com/2019/06/05/fischer-hallock-awarded-peter-j-cutino-award/#respond Wed, 05 Jun 2019 22:30:07 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1156003 The Stanford water polo programs continue to make waves even after the conclusions of their seasons. Junior Makenzie Fischer and redshirt sophomore Ben Hallock were each awarded the Peter J. Cutino Award. Considered the Heisman Trophy of the collegiate water polo world, the award is handed out to the best male player and best female player of each year.

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The Stanford water polo programs continue to make waves even after the conclusions of their seasons. Junior Makenzie Fischer and redshirt sophomore Ben Hallock were each awarded the Peter J. Cutino Award. Considered the Heisman Trophy of the collegiate water polo world, the award is handed out to the best male player and best female player of each year.

This is the third time that Stanford has swept the awards. Tony Azevedo (2001-04) and Brenda Villa (2001-03) were the honorees in 2002 and Azevedo repeated with Jackie Frank (2001-03) the following year. Hallock joins Azevedo, who won the Cutino Award all four years of his career, as the only Stanford men to be honored. Fischer is the sixth Cardinal woman honored, following Kiley Neushul (2015, 2012), Annika Dries (2014, 2011), Melissa Seidemann (2013), Frank and Villa.

Fischer’s award comes after one of the most impressive offensive performances in Stanford history. Averaging a conference-best 3.50 goals per game, Fischer’s average was the second-highest the MPSF has seen in the last fifteen years (Sarah Harris; Pacific; 2007; 3.64).  

She poured in 84 goals over 24 games, which is the second highest single-season total in school history (Ellen Estes; 1998; 93). It also sets the single-season record for a national champion. Currently, Fischer sits at sixth with 205 on the school career goals list. She will have one more year to score 35 goals and reach No. 240, which would surpass current record holders Seidemann (2009-11, 13) and Lauren Silver (2006-09) who are tied at 239.

Fans will have to wait a year for Fischer to return to Avery, as she will be taking a year off from the team to train with Team USA for the 2020 Olympics.

Fischer helped lead the Cardinal to its seventh program title this past season. For her efforts, she was named the NCAA Tournament MVP as well as earning MPSF Player of the Year and ACWPC National Player of the Year honors.

Hallock paced Stanford in scoring with 65 goals on the year, and he rattled the cage in 21 of his 23 games. He had the second highest goals-per-game average in the conference, scoring at a 2.86 clip.

Fischer, Hallock awarded Peter J. Cutino Award
Redshirt sophomore Ben Hallock (above) became just the second Stanford man to be awarded the Peter J. Cutino award. Hallock helped Stanford return to the NCAA finals for the first time since 2008. (HECTOR GARCIA-MOLINA/isiphotos.com)

Due to his extremely high level of play and status as a member of the 2016 Olympic team, Hallock was normally double- or triple-teamed by opponents. Despite this he pounded back hat tricks in 12 games. He had a career-high eight-goal contest against UC Irvine early in the year.

“I am extremely thankful and humbled to win this award,” said Hallock. “Thank you to the Cutino family for this great honor. I also want to thank my family for the passion, dedication and discipline they instilled in me. To all the incredible coaches I have had the pleasure of working with, thank you for the time and energy you put in to make me the player I am today. To my Stanford teammates, you mean so much to me. Your support and friendship have made a positive impact on my life.”

Like Fischer, Hallock was named the ACWPC’s National Player of the Year for his efforts in leading the Cardinal to their first NCAA final since 2008. He also helped Stanford capture its first MPSF post-season conference title in five years.

Contact James Hemker at jahemker ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Women’s water polo claims seventh NCAA title in program history https://stanforddaily.com/2019/05/12/womens-water-polo-claims-seventh-ncaa-title-in-program-history/ https://stanforddaily.com/2019/05/12/womens-water-polo-claims-seventh-ncaa-title-in-program-history/#respond Mon, 13 May 2019 01:33:48 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1154723 For the sixth time in nine years, Stanford women’s water polo is the best program in the country. The second-seeded Cardinal topped No. 1 USC 9-8 in one of the most evenly matched games of the year.

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For the sixth time in nine years, Stanford women’s water polo is the best program in the country. The second-seeded Cardinal topped No. 1 USC 9-8 in one of the most evenly matched games of the year.

Neither team led by more than a single goal, and there were eight tie scores and five lead changes. Stanford took 26 shots and USC took 25, while both goalies had nine saves.

Junior Makenzie Fischer, who was named tournament MVP, scored three times for her 16th hat trick of the season. She scored 84 goals over the course of the year, which is second-most in school history (93, Ellen Estes 1998).

Named to All-Tournament first team were sophomore Aria Fischer and freshman Ryann Neushul. Each contributed two scores, with Neushul having the game-winner.

Senior Kat Klass was named to the All-Tournament Second Team, and she scored once. Junior Hannah Shabb had the goal of the match, a backhanded strike that gave the Cardinal the lead at a pivotal moment.

“Hannah’s goal was my favorite goal,” said Fischer. “She just played so, so, so tough today. Watching her just go post up someone who was probably bigger than her and whip on the backhand was amazing.”

Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Emalia Eichelberger was pivotal in the cage with nine saves and four steals. Named to the 2019 All-Tournament First team, she racked up 19 saves over the course of the tourney.

“How was the match? Well my legs are burning,” said Eichelberger. “It was a tough game, but all the technical skills were really hammered in every single day of every single practice.”

USC’s Mireia Guiral opened up the match less than two minutes in. On the ensuing possession, the Cardinal earned a five-meter penalty that Makenzie Fischer was able to convert. The Trojans responded immediately, as Guiral put away her second of the match.

A minute elapsed to the 4:37 mark before the score was equalized off the arm of Neushul. The first quarter ended in a tie, as would the two following quarters.

Stanford took their first lead 55 seconds into the second quarter when Makenzie Fischer buried a ball in the back of the net. The Cardinal could not extend the lead any further before Guiral secured her hat trick for the Trojans, tying up the game again.

Less than a minute later, USC’s Maud Megens, one of the top players in the nation, converted a power play to retake the lead. The following possession for the Cardinal saw the reverse happen as Stanford drew the exclusion, and Aria Fischer made good on it.

The goal of the game then came a minute later with 3:36 remaining in the half. Shabb got the ball down low and made all of USC look silly with a wicked back-handed shot that put Stanford up 5-4. For the Cardinal, it was the emotional spark they needed to stay strong through the rest of the game.

“When you have someone like Hannah step up, it fires up the whole team,” said Neushul. “JT [head coach John Tanner] said at halftime, ‘Hannah that’s exactly what we need in this game.’ That energy gets spread to everyone, and everyone just gets pumped. That goal was more impactful for us than just a goal as a stat. It was huge for us in that moment.”

Undeterred by Stanford’s success, Megens returned the favor, without the flair, to keep the game tied heading into halftime.

Coming out of the break, Aria Fischer was slapped with her second exclusion and the Trojans took advantage of the one-Fischer pool. The Trojans converted three of the 12 power plays they were afforded. Stanford did not fare any better, scoring goals on two of their 11.

Stanford’s advantage came at the five-meter line. Three five-meter penalties were called against the Trojans, and the Cardinal put all of them away. Aria Fischer was handed the ball at the penalty line with 6:09 to go in the third, and she evened the score 6-6.

A series of rapid-fire events followed, starting with Guiral tallying her fourth score of the game. Stanford responded 90 seconds later when Klass whipped a shot as the shot clock expired. The bizarre shot simply rolled across the water, past USC’s keeper, and into the goal.

“That was just a last-ditch effort since the shot clock was winding down,” said Klass. “I just got off from the defender as hard as I could, and I threw it at the goal. I definitely didn’t roll it on purpose, it’s just how it came out.”

USC returned with the ensuing possession to retake the lead 7-8. The next time USC got the ball, Aria Fischer received her third exclusion of the game, sending her to the bench with over 10 minutes of gametime left.

“I’ve been excluded, but never in a game of that caliber,” said Aria Fischer. “My immediate thoughts probably can’t be said, but my second thoughts were, ‘We got this.’ I could feel the energy in the pool, and I saw the look in my teammates’ eyes. I knew they would pull through and step up.”

Though USC had converted on Aria Fischer’s previous two exclusions, they came up short on this 6-on-5, as well as for the rest of the game. A major reason for that was the fact that USC’s Paige Hauschild, their second-best goal scorer, fouled out on a five-meter penalty a minute later.

Makenzie Fischer took the shot and scored, tying the game. On the day, she was two-for-two from the penalty line, an area she had struggled with towards the end of the season.

“I think I did have it in my head that I had been missing a couple,” said Makenzie Fischer. “But in the end I just made sure to get on my legs, take my time, see where I want to go with the ball, and be confident in the spot that I have chosen. It hasn’t necessarily gone well in the past, so I’m happy it worked out today.”

With the score at 8-8, the finals had boiled down to an eight-minute water polo match to decide everything. Despite three straight exclusions against USC, Stanford could not convert anything. Finally, a fourth exclusion gave Neushul enough room to rattle the cage at 4:51.

“Ryann has really stepped up this year and has been a huge member of the team,” said Aria Fischer. “Watching that shot from the bench was amazing. It’s huge for a freshman to have that control over a game.”

The goal would prove to be the game winner as Eichelberger loomed large over USC. Despite getting off two solid attempts in the last 45 seconds, the Trojans were unable to find the equalizer.

“The last shot was a good shot,” said Eichelberger. “But I followed it with my eyes and saw it went wide.”

The program now has seven NCAA titles (2002, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2019), which is tied for most in the country with UCLA. It also increases the school’s total NCAA team championship count to 121, which is the most of any collegiate sports program in the country.

The match also marks the ends of the careers of the four members of the senior class. Klass, Cassidy, Madison Berggren and Mackenzie Wiley all leave the Farm on top of the water polo world as champions.

“I think I found out junior year that we would be hosting,” said Klass. “Knowing that I would play my last games in Avery was really incredible. I didn’t let myself think about what it was going to be like if we won because I didn’t want to jinx it.”

“I definitely would say its a fairytale ending,” added Berggren. “It’s really cool to end our career here in Avery with our hats, our teammates, our staff and everyone else who has helped to get us here.”


Contact James Hemker at jahemker ‘at’ stanford.edu

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Women’s water polo advances to tenth-straight NCAA final https://stanforddaily.com/2019/05/11/womens-water-polo-advances-to-tenth-straight-ncaa-final/ https://stanforddaily.com/2019/05/11/womens-water-polo-advances-to-tenth-straight-ncaa-final/#respond Sun, 12 May 2019 05:31:45 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1154705 In a game that ran the full gamut of emotion, No. 2 women’s water polo overcame No. 3 UCLA in an 8-7 overtime thriller. Stanford and No. 1 USC will face each other in the NCAA finals for the third time in four years. Sophomore Aria Fischer willed the Cardinal to victory with five of […]

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In a game that ran the full gamut of emotion, No. 2 women’s water polo overcame No. 3 UCLA in an 8-7 overtime thriller. Stanford and No. 1 USC will face each other in the NCAA finals for the third time in four years.

Sophomore Aria Fischer willed the Cardinal to victory with five of Stanford’s eight goals. She has now scored ten goals through two games in the tournament.

“She played great didn’t she,” said head coach John Tanner. “And you know the thing with her is that she scores goals, but she was also sensational on defense.”

Senior Kat Klass, junior Makenzie Fischer and freshman Ryann Neushul each scored as well.

Redshirt sophomore Emilia Eichelberger came away with the win, blocking seven shots over the course of the game.

Stanford erupted from the first whistle, scoring five straight goals over the first two periods. Aria Fischer’s first two goals sandwiched Klass’s score, and then Makenzie Fischer made it four goals in as many minutes.

A full eight minutes then passed before Aria Fischer claimed her hat trick half way into the second quarter.

For UCLA, the position looked dire to everyone but the team itself. In the two schools’ regular season matchup, the Cardinal also jumped to an early four-goal lead that UCLA then erased. While the Bruins ultimately lost that game 6-7, they clearly had the ability to mount a comeback. And comeback they did.

The possession after Aria Fischer’s third goal, the Bruins finally got on the board by converting a 6-on-5. For UCLA, the goal opened the floodgates and began a 6-0 run over the course of the next two and a half quarters.

“We looked really fabulous at the beginning and then we got really out of rhythm,” said Tanner. “From there, we were in a constant uphill fight.”

The second goal came on another Bruins power play with less than 15 seconds left in the half. Less than two minutes into the third, UCLA struck again. Another 90 seconds passed before UCLA’s fourth goal slipped past Eichelberger. Stanford’s five-goal lead was erased at the 3:55 mark in the third quarter when UCLA converted their third 6-on-5.

The third quarter ended in a 5-5 tie and the beginning of the fourth quarter was marred for Stanford by foul troubles. Five consecutive exclusions were called against the Cardinal, and on the fifth, the Bruins scored. With just 4:11 left in the game, the Bruins took the lead for the first time.

Four of the six UCLA goals came off of power plays, but overall Stanford held strong with their man-down defense, as the Bruins had 17 total opportunities. On offense, the Cardinal capitalized on two of their eight power plays.

Living up to the Stanford student section chants of “She has a [Olympic] gold medal,” Aria Fischer scored the equalizer from six meters away with 2:35 left on the clock. Regulation ended without any more goals and the teams entered overtime.

“We finally got that goal to reset ourselves,” said Tanner. “It took a heroic effort in overtime to then establish a lead and finally get back to a two-goal lead.”

Though UCLA won the sprint, the Cardinal put up a big defensive stop, and the ball found its way back to Aria Fischer, who scored her fifth and final goal to put Stanford back on top. A minute later, Neushul rattled the cage with an insurance goal that extended the lead to two, 8-6.

The second period of overtime saw UCLA create a goal with just under a minute left, however Neushul fired off another shot which UCLA’s keeper Carlee Kapana was forced to tip out of bounds, meaning the Cardinal could keep possession and run out the clock.

“Hats off to UCLA,” said Tanner. “They were valiant to say the least. They were incredibly courageous throughout, but the resilience shown by our team was really impressive.”

Stanford extends its own NCAA record of 10 consecutive women’s water polo finals appearances. In the finals, Stanford will face its toughest and most familiar foe in USC. This season, the Trojans have taken two of the three meetings, including the MPSF Championship on April 28 in Avery.

“It’s clear that the rivalry between USC and Stanford runs deep,” said Neushul. “We came into the tournament wanting to play USC. We’ve been trading games all year. We know their personnel, and we’ve seen them three times this year. This is the matchup we are most excited for, and we are ready to go. We want this.”

First sprint is set for 3 p.m. PST tomorrow in Avery Aquatic Center.


Contact James Hemker at jahemker ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Women’s water polo advances to 19th consecutive NCAA semifinals https://stanforddaily.com/2019/05/10/womens-water-polo-advances-to-19th-consecutive-ncaa-semifinals/ https://stanforddaily.com/2019/05/10/womens-water-polo-advances-to-19th-consecutive-ncaa-semifinals/#respond Sat, 11 May 2019 01:39:08 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1154687 Second-seeded women’s water polo cruised past No. 7 University of Pacific (UoP) 18-9 in Friday’s NCAA quarterfinal match. The Cardinal offense was powered by sophomore Aria Fischer who tied her career best with five goals. Junior Mackenzie Fischer contributed two goals, becoming the sixth player in program history with 200 career goals. She joins the […]

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Second-seeded women’s water polo cruised past No. 7 University of Pacific (UoP) 18-9 in Friday’s NCAA quarterfinal match. The Cardinal offense was powered by sophomore Aria Fischer who tied her career best with five goals.

Junior Mackenzie Fischer contributed two goals, becoming the sixth player in program history with 200 career goals. She joins the likes of several Olympians, including Melissa Seidemann and Maggie Steffens. Mackenzie Fischer is also the second player to reach eighty goals in a season.

Stanford scored the first five goals of the game and never looked back. Behind the Fischer sisters, senior Madison Berggren tallied four scores for her fifth hat trick of the season. Senior Kat Klass and freshman Madison Stamen each poured in two apiece. Senior Mackenzie Wiley, sophomore Sarah Klass and freshman Chloe Harbilas were each able to find the back of the net as well.

“UoP is always well prepared and disciplined,” said head coach John Tanner. “They can give people a lot of problems. We combined an attacking mindset with a lot of focus. It’s nice with all the excitement of the first game of the tournament, especially for all the freshman.”

In the cage, redshirt sophomore Emalia Eichelberger started for the first quarter, and freshman Thea Walsh relieved her for the rest of the game. Eichelberger exited with three saves, two steals and two goals allowed. Walsh posted seven saves and allowed as many goals.

While the three years of upperclassmen all have multiple games of NCAA tournament experience, the freshmen entered the game with a combination of nerves and an excitement to perform.

“My roommate is a junior, and we were talking in the hotel about what it was going to be like,” said Harbilas. “It’s like any other game and obviously there are going to be nerves heading in, but it’s good to have those nerves and harness that. We obviously need to get through that game and keep winning since its win or go home, but she stressed having the mindset that it’s any other game and to just go in and get it done.”

Harbilas executed her mental game plan perfectly and drew first blood less than two minutes in. The next possession, Makenzie Fischer struck to make it two goals in less than 40 seconds. From there, Aria Fischer took over the game, scoring at the 3:43 mark and again at the 2:41 mark. The possession following her second goal, she then pulled up from distance and got the crossbar bounce to earn her natural hat trick. The Tigers finally responded in the closing seconds of the first quarter with their first goal.

“Our first four or five minutes of offense weren’t very good because we just expected something different and so we had to make adjustments on that,” said UoP head coach James Graham. “Overall it was an improvement, but by then the damage had been done. Obviously hindsight is 20-20, but I just feel like I didn’t put them in a very good position to win the game.”

UoP entered the second quarter and caught the Cardinal off guard. The Tigers secured the sprint then forced a 6-on-5, which they capitalized on. Stanford regained its footing in the second half of the period as four different Cardinal players scored. UoP found its way past Walsh twice in that time frame, but Aria Fischer end the half with her fourth goal to give Stanford the momentum.

Emerging from halftime, Berggren secured Stanford’s first sprint, and it quickly developed into Aria Fischer’s fifth and final goal. Berggren and Kat Klass sandwiched a UoP goal with scores of their own to make it 13-5 at the 4:28 mark.

A minute later, the Tigers were able to find an opening, but Berggren responded on the ensuing possession with her third of the game. A minute later, she converted a 5-meter penalty shot and increased the lead to nine, 15-6, as the two teams headed into the final quarter of play.

With the victory pretty well secured, Stanford spent most of its offense passing and trying to run out the clock. The Tigers were able to score three times against Stanford’s secondary defense, however the Cardinal offense kept pace and rattled UoP’s cage three more times as well.

Now in the semifinals, Stanford will face the winner of No. 3 UCLA and No. 6 Michigan tomorrow at 5 p.m. PST in Avery Aquatic Center.


Contact James Hemker at jahemker ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Women’s water polo begins championship campaign https://stanforddaily.com/2019/05/10/womens-water-polo-begins-championship-campaign/ https://stanforddaily.com/2019/05/10/womens-water-polo-begins-championship-campaign/#respond Fri, 10 May 2019 07:04:02 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1154602 For the 19th consecutive year, the women’s water polo team will be hunting for hardware as it hosts the 2019 NCAA women’s water polo tournament. Having won five of the last eight titles, No. 2 Stanford (20-2) will be looking for its seventh title in program history. After a tough overtime defeat to USC in […]

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For the 19th consecutive year, the women’s water polo team will be hunting for hardware as it hosts the 2019 NCAA women’s water polo tournament. Having won five of the last eight titles, No. 2 Stanford (20-2) will be looking for its seventh title in program history.

After a tough overtime defeat to USC in the MPSF finals, the Cardinal earned the second-seed in the tourney with an at-large bid. Stanford is the only school to have qualified for every NCAA tournament since its inception in 2001.

Despite losing the MPSF title to USC, Stanford can remain confident in its ability to perform during the NCAA’s. The team has won the conference just once in the last 13 seasons, and yet it has missed just four NCAA finals since 2001.

This year’s team boasts the strongest offense in the conference, averaging 16.09 goals-per-game, which is over two goals more than second-place USC (13.89). Junior Makenzie Fischer has emerged as one of the greatest scorers in Stanford history. Her 3.71 goal-per-game average is well beyond that of any other player, and she could be just the third MPSF player to average north of three goals-a-game in the last fifteen years. She currently sits at 199 career goals, and her 76 goals this year are the second most in a season in school history.

Fischer is joined in the top-15 on the MPSF scoring chart by her sister sophomore Aria Fischer (seventh; 2.19), sophomore Sarah Klass (ninth; 1.86), senior Kat Klass (12th; 1.57) and freshman Ryann Neushul (15th; 1.45).

Stanford also brings the second-best defense to the tournament. The Trojans (4.33) are the only team that allow fewer goals per game than Stanford (6.50). In the cage, redshirt sophomore Emalia Eichelberger has posted the third most saves-per-game (9.12), and she allows the fourth fewest goals-per-game (7.40).

In recognition of the excellent year the team has put together, the Cardinal swept the conference awards. Makenzie Fischer was named the MPSF Player of the Year, Neushul earned MPSF Newcomer of the Year honors, and head coach John Tanner took home MPSF Coach of the Year. It was also announced that Tanner will be inducted into the US Water Polo Hall of Fame in June.

The Cardinal are set to play No. 7 University of Pacific in the first round on Friday. In the two teams’ previous meeting this year, the Tigers were handled without issue, 14-3. Pacific failed to score in the first half, and Kat Klass paced the team with a hat trick while nine other players rattled the cage.

The rest of the bracket is composed of top-seeded USC, No. 3 UCLA, No. 4 Cal, No. 5 Hawai’i, No. 6 Michigan and No. 8 UC San Diego. Stanford holds an 8-2 record against the field this year, with both losses coming at the hands of the Trojans.

First sprint between the Cardinal and the Tigers is set for 3:30 p.m. PST at Avery Aquatic Center. The winner between the Cardinal and the Tigers will square off against UCLA or Michigan on Saturday at 5 p.m. PST.


Contact James Hemker at jahemker ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Water polo bested 9-8 in sudden-death loss to USC https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/29/water-polo-bested-9-8-in-sudden-death-loss-to-usc/ https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/29/water-polo-bested-9-8-in-sudden-death-loss-to-usc/#respond Mon, 29 Apr 2019 07:04:21 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1153863 In an intense game which lasted to sudden death overtime, No. 1 women’s water polo was bested 8-9 by No. 2 USC in Sunday's MPSF title game. USC scored with just 43 seconds in the third overtime period after a double exclusion forced a 5-on-5.

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In an intense game which lasted to sudden death overtime, No. 1 women’s water polo was bested 8-9 by No. 2 USC in Sunday’s MPSF title game. USC scored with just 43 seconds in the third overtime period after a double exclusion forced a 5-on-5.

Historically, the MPSF has not been an accurate indicator of Cardinal success in the postseason. While Stanford has won five of the last eight NCAA titles, they have been crowned MPSF champions just once in the last 13 years.

Every game this season between the two schools had been decided by just a single point. The programs could not be more evenly matched, as the all-time record sat at 36-36 before this game.

“It’s an interesting matchup in that both teams play really good team defense,” said Stanford head coach John Tanner. “When you get quality opportunities you need to nail them down. The margins are so tight that you will look back at all the misses and bemoan them.”

Playing solid team offense, seven different players rattled the cage in the loss. Sophomores Aria Fischer and Sarah Klass each found the back of the net twice. Seniors Madison Berggren and Kat Klass contributed one goal a piece, while junior Makenzie Fischer and freshman Ryann Neushul also scored.

On the defensive front, the Cardinal were lights out, with redshirt sophomore Emalia Eichelberger blocking nearly everything. She closed the match with a career-best 16 saves, and she helped lead the 6-on-5 defense which negated 13 of the Trojan’s 15 power plays.

“We are a strong defensive team and we held our defensive end really well,” said Eichelberger. “We have to keep hammering it home on offense and that game will be ours next time.”

USC drew first blood a minute into the match, but Stanford soon responded with goals from Aria Fischer and Berggren just 18 seconds apart to pull the Cardinal ahead. A minute later, Kat Klass found her shot to give Stanford a two-goal lead. USC cut it to one in the closing minutes.

Stanford regained the momentum at the start of the second quarter by winning the sprint. Aria Fischer then put the ball in the back of the net for the second time. For the next three minutes, neither team’s offense could best the opposing defense and Stanford held its 4-2 lead.

USC finally found a chink in the armor at the 4:13 mark, and again three minutes later to equalize the game. Makenzie Fischer responded on a 5-meter penalty shot in the following possession to retake the lead. It lasted just 47 seconds before the Trojans made good on a power play for the second time.

The Cardinal were the first to score in the second half, as Sarah Klass drove one in at the 5:17 mark. USC found the tying goal three minutes later, but Neushul responded during the ensuing Stanford possession. The quarter closed with Stanford holding a tentative 7-6 lead.

The fourth quarter began in a stalemate as neither team could best the goalkeepers. Finally, an exclusion three minutes into the quarter gave Stanford an offensive opportunity, which Sarah Klass converted.

A problem in all of their games against highly ranked teams, the Cardinal were unable to close out the game. USC scored off of a long transition pass, and then they were able to negotiate a Stanford exclusion to re-tie the game with three minutes left in regulation.

In the remaining time, Eichelberger made two huge 1-on-1 stops at the 2:45 mark and again with nine seconds left in the game.

“Every game I try to get into that flow state, and today was no different,” said Eichelberger. “I got straight into it and never let it go”

In the first overtime, Neushul almost made the hero goal with a lob shot, but the ball floated on the goal line and was saved before it completely crossed the plane. Stanford never got as good an opportunity as that one for the rest of the game.

In the third period of overtime, when sudden death was initiated, the Cardinal were forced to play defense almost the entire time. The offense barely had a possession, and USC was able to convert its many chances with 43 seconds remaining.

“It was a hard fought game and at sudden death it becomes anyone’s game,” said Eichelberger. “We fought tooth and nail but we just didn’t get it done.”

Stanford will return to action in Avery with the NCAA tournament in two weeks. The seedings will be released on Monday, but it is expected that the Cardinal will be slotted as the No. 2 seed.

Contact James Hemker at jahemker ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Women’s water polo tops Cal in MPSF semifinals https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/27/womens-water-polo-tops-cal-in-mpsf-semifinals/ https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/27/womens-water-polo-tops-cal-in-mpsf-semifinals/#respond Sun, 28 Apr 2019 05:42:36 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1153767 Despite a second-half slide, top-ranked women’s water polo was able to ward off No. 4 Cal in an 11-9 decision. Freshman Ryann Neushul led the team in scoring with four goals, and sophomore Aria Fischer emerged from the fray with her tenth hat trick of the season.

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Despite a second-half slide, top-ranked women’s water polo (20-1, 6-0 MPSF) was able to ward off No. 4 Cal (16-78, 3-3 MPSF) in an 11-9 decision. The Cardinal commanded a 9-2 lead going into the half, but foul trouble allowed the Golden Bears to make a 2-7 run in the second half. Stanford advances to the Sunday’s MPSF finals against No. 2 USC.

Freshman Ryann Neushul led the team in scoring with four goals. Neushul, who was named the MPSF Newcomer of the Year earlier this week, has now scored four times in back-to-back matches. Sophomore Aria Fischer emerged from the fray with her tenth hat trick of the season.

“Ryann’s development has been steady,” said head coach John Tanner. “It takes a little while to get used to the college game, but she has now had so much experience and she’s tough.”

Senior Kat Klass opened up the game by scoring the team’s first and third goals. Junior Kayla Constandse recorded her fifth goal on the season at the end of the third quarter, which proved to be Stanford’s final goal of the match.

Junior Makenzie Fischer was quiet on the stat sheet with just a single goal, but her presence was still felt around the pool. A top-tier defender who moonlights as the leading Cardinal scorer, she helped to stop the Golden Bears on 12 of their 17 power plays.

“You have to remember, she made the Olympic team as a defender,” said Tanner. “I think they were three for 14 at one point on 6-on-5 plays, and Makenzie is a big part of that. That’s a vital part of the game, especially when you have referees calling fouls.”

In the goal, redshirt sophomore Emalia Eichelberger posted six saves and a steal. The Cardinal forced six steals as a team.

The final score belies the dominant performance by Stanford in the first half. After winning the first sprint, the Cardinal were able to convert on their first two possessions for a quick 2-0 lead. Goals from Klass and Aria Fischer sandwiched a Cal score to make it a 4-1 lead at the end of the first.

“In the first half, we always aim to come out with a strong start,” Aria Fischer said. “I think today during the first half we had really good chemistry. We were doing a good job attacking and seeing each other in the pool. We played some really good water polo out there.”

The second quarter started quiet for the first two minutes until Mackenzie Fischer was found in transition for an easy goal. Aria Fischer and Neushul spent the rest of the half trading goals, with Fischer finding her hat trick with 2:30 left, and Neushul recording her third score at the 1:10 mark.

The second half opened with Cal scoring their third goal during a 6-on-5. Neushul responded the next possession on Stanford’s own power play to restore the lead to seven, 10-3.

From that point, the Cardinal fell into severe foul trouble. Seven exclusions were levied against Stanford from 5:18 to the 1:26 mark, and impact players junior Hannah Shabb and sophomore Sarah Klass both fouled out. Stanford was slow to react to the referees’ tight calling of the game, and they paid the price. The two teams combined for 30 exclusions, with 17 of them being assessed to Cardinal players.

“We really lost our rhythm,” said Tanner. “We had seven exclusions in the third, and we also had a lot of offensive fouls. We were giving too many opportunities to the referees to make calls against us. I was telling the team to be mindful of what was happening. They called the game much more technically and much tighter, so we had to talk about how to adapt.”

The Golden Bears took advantage of the power plays, scoring three times. Constandse’s goal at the end of the third meant the lead only shrank by one, 11-5, from the beginning to the end of the quarter, but the momentum was with Cal.

“Cal did great and they were putting on a great attacking half, so it was about locking down on defense and trying to keep up our own attack,” said Aria Fischer. “We needed to play defense as a team like we had been on offense.”

Stanford failed to score in the fourth quarter, marking just the third time all season that the Cardinal were blanked in a quarter. Cal took advantage of the Stanford drought by scoring three times in the first four minutes of the final period and cutting the lead in half.

After a much-needed timeout, the Cardinal regrouped and the defense was able to hold fast while the offense ran off the clock in 35 second chunks. A final Golden Bears goal slipped by with 24 seconds left, but by that point it was clear that Stanford had held on long enough to secure the win.

Stanford returns to the pool Sunday at 3:00 p.m. to face USC. The two teams have split their last two meetings, with the Cardinal picking up the most recent win 9-8 in overtime.

“USC is a really good team,” said Tanner. “We beat them earlier, but they didn’t have their leading scorer. Now they’ve got their whole complement. We’ve had fun games with them, and I like to think that we will be able to keep a good rhythm throughout the game tomorrow.”


Contact James Hemker at jahemker ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Women’s water polo seeks championship run in MPSF tournament https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/26/womens-water-polo-seeks-championship-run-in-mpsf-tournament/ https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/26/womens-water-polo-seeks-championship-run-in-mpsf-tournament/#respond Fri, 26 Apr 2019 07:03:13 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1153640 Stanford’s No. 1 women’s water polo team (19-1, 6-0 MPSF) prepares for the conference playoffs this weekend. After wrapping up an absolutely monstrous season, this water polo squad is heavily favorited to take it all the way.

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Stanford’s No. 1 women’s water polo team (19-1, 6-0 MPSF) prepares for the conference playoffs this weekend. After wrapping up an absolutely monstrous season, this water polo squad is heavily favorited to take it all the way.

Having earned a bye into the semifinal round, Stanford will play on home turf in the Avery Aquatics Center at 2:30 p.m. PST on Saturday against the winner of No. 4 Berkeley (15-6, 3-3) and No. 20 San Jose State (10-13, 2-4). Should they win that matchup, the Cardinal women will be playing for the championship at 3:00 p.m. PST on Sunday.

The Cardinal offense is led by junior Makenzie Fischer, who has averaged four goals per game this season. For reference, some teams are only able to muster four goals total when playing against Stanford, and the second highest scorer in the MPSF, Cal’s Emma Wright, puts up 2.83 goals per game.

Other leading scorers for the Cardinal include sophomore Aria Fischer, junior Hannah Shabb and senior Kat Klass, all of whom have recorded hat tricks in at least one game this season. When the Cardinal get hot, they have blown out opponents by as many as 21 goals.

Stanford played San Jose State last Saturday, marking the last game of the regular season. In the match, the Cardinal took an early 9-3 lead and never let off the gas pedal, winning the Senior Day game 22-4. Both freshman driver Ryann Neushul and Makenzie Fischer rattled in four goals. Goalkeeper Thea Walsh played all four quarters, made eight saves and limited the Spartans to just one goal in the second half.

If San Jose State makes it past Berkeley in the first round, they will need to put up a much stronger performance than they did last weekend to stand a chance against Stanford.

Cal has proven much more irksome, coming very close to upsetting the Cardinal in their last matchup on April 13th. Stanford ultimately claimed the game with a 13-12 scoreline.

Though the Cardinal have won four straight against Berkeley, the playoffs bring about an entirely different intensity. Seeing as Cal has the second highest scorer in the MPSF in Emma Wright, along with a demonstrably potent offense, Stanford must remain focused and bring their best game should they find themselves facing their cross-bay rival on Saturday.

With home turf advantage, high seeding and as much talent as one can ask for, the Cardinal should be poised to dominate in the post season.

After the MPSF tournament, the Cardinal will compete for the national title in the NCAA Tournament starting Friday, May 10th. Last year, the Cardinal fell 4-5 in the title game against USC and look to avenge the loss this season.

Contact Stephen Ren at rensteph ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Must-see athletic events during Admit Weekend https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/25/copy-sr-athletic-events-to-see-during-admit-weekend/ https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/25/copy-sr-athletic-events-to-see-during-admit-weekend/#respond Thu, 25 Apr 2019 07:03:56 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1153531 There are plenty of opportunities during Admit Weekend to see the Stanford Cardinal do battle on land and in the water. Women's water polo, baseball, and softball will all have games throughout the weekend.

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In addition to its top tier academic and research facilities, Stanford boasts the greatest athletic program in the country. The Cardinal have won more NCAA Division I Team Championships than any other school in the country with 120. This year, Stanford has already brought home three national championships in women’s volleyball, women’s swimming and diving and men’s gymnastics — which they won just last week.

As the heart of spring quarter approaches, seasons are winding down and fewer teams are still out competing on campus. Regardless, there are plenty of opportunities during Admit Weekend to see the Stanford Cardinal battle on land and in the water. Baseball, softball and women’s water polo will all have games on campus throughout the weekend.

Women’s Water Polo

Ranked No. 1 in both the nation and the conference, the Stanford women’s water polo team (19-1, 6-0 MPSF) will be hosting the postseason MPSF tournament this weekend. Thanks to their stellar conference play, the Cardinal earned a bye to the semifinals and will be competing against the winner of No. 4 Cal (15-6, 3-3) and No. 20 San Jose State (10-13, 2-4) on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. PST in Avery Aquatic Center. They will then play on Sunday at 3 p.m. PST if they win, or at 1 p.m. PST if they lose.

The Cardinal are well-equipped to deal with San Jose State if they somehow slip by Cal. Stanford has outscored the Spartans 41-8 in their two meetings this season, including dealing out a 22-4 thrashing on Senior Day last weekend.

The Golden Bears will prove to be a more formidable challenge. In their most recent clash two weeks ago, Stanford held off a big Cal comeback in the second half to escape with a 13-12 win. Those 12 goals are the most any teams has scored against the Cardinal this season.

Currently in second place at 76 goals, junior driver Makenzie Fischer is chasing the school’s single-season goals record of 93, which has stood untouched since 1998. With her conference-leading four goals-per-game average, she has a legitimate chance of topping the record by the end of the year.

Baseball

No. 3 Stanford baseball (29-6, 13-2 Pac-12) is riding the hot hand, coming into the weekend having won nine of their last ten games. The Arizona Wildcats (18-20, 6-12) will be on tap for a three-game conference series. On the other end of the spectrum from the Cardinal, Arizona has dropped seven of their last eight contests. Stanford’s bats are booming, with the offense driving in 56 runs over the past four games.

Head on over to Sunken Diamond Friday night for a 6:05 p.m. PST game or Saturday for a 5:05 p.m. PST game. Stay around after Saturday’s game to see the annual fireworks show. If you are an animal lover, Sunday’s game at 1:05 p.m. will feature Pups in the Park, where the first 50 dogs in attendance will receive a Stanford Baseball dog leash.

Two players to watch are senior outfield Brandon Wulff and junior RHP Will Matthiessen. Wulff’s 13 home runs (second in the Pac-12), 34 runs, 1.107 .OPS, .678 slugging percentage (fourth in the Pac-12) and 29 walks lead the team. In his last five games, Wulff has five home runs, 14 RBI and 11 runs. On the season, Matthiessen leads the team in batting average (.368), on-base percentage (.456), hits (46) and RBIs (35).

Softball

Softball is having a historic season, breaking the 30-win mark for the first time since 2014. The team was swept in its last conference series against No. 3 Arizona last weekend, but they recovered with a midweek 3-2 win over Fresno State. The Arizona State Sun Devils are coming to town on a nine-game losing streak. All of those losses have come in conference play, which bodes well for the Cardinal.

Friday night’s game is slated for 7 p.m. PST at Stanford Softball Stadium. Beforehand, there will be a poster and visor making station, as well as trading cards. The first 150 fans to Saturday’s 5:30 p.m. PST game will receive a Stanford Softball oven mitt. Like baseball, stay afterwards for the fireworks show. Sunday’s game at 1 p.m. PST will feature Pups in the Park as well, and the team will sign autographs afterwards.

Junior utility Teaghan Cowles and freshman utility Emily Schultz lead the Cardinal from the batter’s box. Leading the team, Cowles is batting .400 and has a slugging percentage of .652. She also leads the team in hits (54), doubles (nine) and triples (five). Schultz is batting just under Cowles at .338. She also boasts a slugging percentage of .647. Both have an on-base percentage of .471.


Contact James Hemker at jahemker ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Water polo concludes regular season undefeated in MPSF https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/20/water-polo-concludes-regular-season-undefeated/ https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/20/water-polo-concludes-regular-season-undefeated/#respond Sun, 21 Apr 2019 03:25:14 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1153149 Top-ranked women’s water polo finished their 2019 regular season with two more wins to end undefeated in the MPSF for the first time since 2015.

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Top-ranked Stanford women’s water polo (18-1, 6-0 MPSF) finished their 2019 regular season with two more wins to end the year undefeated in the MPSF for the first time since 2015. In the final out-of-conference contest, the Cardinal delivered a 24-8 beating to No. 9 UC Davis (17-11, 3-2 Big West) on Friday night. Coming back to celebrate Senior Day on Saturday, Stanford dispatched No. 20 San Jose State (10-13, 2-4 MPSF) to the tune of 22-4.

Seniors Madison Berggren, Kat Klass, Cassidy Wiley and Mackenzie Wiley all saw significant action in their final regular season home games. Despite the celebration, the stories of these four women at the Farm are far from over as Stanford will host both the MPSF and the NCAA tournaments this postseason.

“I’m really not focused on it being the end at all,” Klass said. “I’m just going to wait until NCAAs is over and then let the fact that I’m done with college water polo blindside me. I’m all in on finishing this season and putting all that I have into the last of my four years here.”

Aggies Annihilated

The UC Davis match featured five players recording hat tricks and three reaching the four-goal mark. Both Fischer sisters, junior Makenzie and sophomore Aria, each rattled the cage four times. Aria Fischer’s last three goals came in a one-minute flurry at the start of the second half.

Junior Hannah Shabb tied her season-high by pouring in four goals. Berggren recorded her fourth hat trick of the season, and freshman Lauren Indart took advantage of her time in the fourth quarter and tallied Stanford’s final three goals.

Sophomore Sarah Klass and freshman Chloe Harbilas each recorded two scores in the second half. Kat Klass and freshman Ryann Neushul also got in on the action with a goal a piece.

“Our game plan was just to attack the other team,” said Berggren. “We wanted to put together a complete game that we have been wanting to see this whole season, and we were really excited with what we did today.”

From the first sprint, UC Davis appeared overwhelmed by the Cardinal offense. The Aggies got on the board with three minutes remaining in the first quarter, but Stanford had already amassed five scores by that point. UC Davis ended the quarter in a five-goal hole, 7-2.

Less than ninety seconds into the second, Stanford added two more points. Three more goals came in eighty seconds to extend the lead to 10. The Aggies responded with one of their own in the final minute, but Shabb put in her third score with six seconds left to erase any momentum for UC Davis.

The Cardinal came out of the half and won its third of eight consecutive sprints during the weekend. Aria Fischer took advantage of the 6-on-5 power play to lengthen the lead to 12, 15-3. The ensuing Aggies possession went nowhere and Aria Fischer scored off the transition just 24 seconds later. She found the back of the net for the fourth time in an identical scenario half a minute later.

The Cardinal then fell into foul trouble and UC Davis was able to convert on two power plays for points five and six. The third ended with another Stanford goal to reach the 20-goal mark for the sixth time this season.

With the majority of the Cardinal reserves in, the fourth quarter was less relentless for the Aggies, though Stanford still outscored them 4-2, leading to the final 24-8 result.

Senior Day Smackdown

Saturday opened with a ceremony to honor the four members of the senior class. Since they joined the program, Stanford has enjoyed an 85-14 record and the 2017 NCAA championship.

“They are just amazing woman as students, athletes and people,” said head coach John Tanner. “They have all been great leaders and role models in their own distinct ways. The other thing I really enjoy about them is their ‘sky is the limit’ mentality. They are really interesting women to be around and they have been a joy to coach.”

In the water, the Cardinal immediately got to business against San Jose State, winning the first sprint and scoring on the opening possession. Neushul returned the next time down the pool to give Stanford the 2-0 lead with the first of her four goals.

Two more Cardinal goals sandwiched the first Spartan score against freshman goalie Thea Walsh with half the quarter gone.

Quiet up to the end of the first, Makenzie Fischer then found herself in the right spots in transition after two consecutive Stanford stops to extend the lead to five and then six goals.

The transition game has not been one of the strongest points for the Cardinal, but the team showed improvement throughout the weekend.

“The transitions have been a concern,” said Tanner. “So much of that is about awareness of as things are happening. We did a much better job of that today, and Fischer is so dynamic. She understands the game from both ends of the pool, so she can be really effective.”

The Spartans responded in the second with their best offensive quarter, scoring twice during the eight-minute period. Meanwhile, Cassidy Wiley put the ball in the cage during a 6-on-5 for her first of two Senior Day goals. Berggren also recorded her second goal of the day during that second period.

Makenzie Fischer claimed her 15th hat trick off the season with a second left in the first half to send the Cardinal into halftime up nine.

At the start of the third, Stanford was awarded a five-meter penalty shot, which Kat Klass converted for her second score of the weekend. Four more goals poured in from the Cardinal attack in the next three minutes to grow the lead to 16-3.

After a string of unsuccessful attempts, Makenzie Fischer recorded her fourth goal with just over two minutes remaining in the period. With that goal, she has tallied 76 scores on the season, which is the second most in a season by a Cardinal woman. Standing between her and the record is Ellen Estes’ 93 goal season in 1998. Stanford will have a maximum five games this postseason for Fischer to break the record.

With less than a minute remaining in the third quarter, Neushul rattled the cage for the fourth and final time, besting her previous career-high three goals in a game. Another buzzer beater goal at the end of the quarter gave Stanford a 19-3 lead heading into the fourth.

Like the game against UC Davis, the final quarter gave the team’s bench an opportunity to battle with the Spartans. Three more balls passed SJSU’s keeper while the Spartans were finally able to end a 17 minute scoring drought to bring the score to its final total, 22-4.

The win gave Stanford its first undefeated conference regular season since 2015. Despite the accomplishment, the team knows that any of the games against USC, UCLA or Cal could have gone either way.

“We had some rough patches in all the conference games,” said Tanner. “All three of the big games were all one-goal games, and we had to execute really well at the end of those games. Obviously, we’d rather not be in those tight spots, but I’m pleased with their poise in those games.”

In total, 11 different players scored during the weekend, with Makenzie Fischer leading the team, as expected, with eight goals. Aria Fischer and Shabb each put away six goals, while Berggren and Neushul tallied five a piece.

In the goal, sophomore starter Emalia Eichelberger played just the first 22 minutes against UC Davis. In that time, she stopped three shots, giving her exactly 100 saves on the season. Walsh played the majority of the weekend, stopping one shot on Friday and eight against the Spartans to match her single-game career high.

The team will return to action next Saturday in the MPSF semifinals against the winner of Cal and San Jose State.

No. 1 Stanford vs. No. 9 UC Davis

Stanford Goals: Aria Fischer 4, Makenzie Fischer 4, Hannah Shabb 4, Madison Berggren 3, Madison Stamen 3, Chloe Harbilas 2, Sarah Klass 2, Kat Klass 1, Ryann Neushul 1

Stanford Saves: Emalia Eichelberger 3, Thea Walsh 1

No. 1 Stanford vs. No. 20 San Jose State

Stanford Goals: Makenzie Fischer 4, Ryann Neushul 4, Madison Berggren 2, Aria Fischer 2, Chloe Harbilas 2, Sarah Klass 2, Hannah Shabb 2, Mackenzie Wiley 2, Lauren Indart 1, Kat Klass 1

Stanford Saves: Thea Walsh 8

Contact James Hemker at jahemker ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Water polo leads NCAA heading into final weekend of regular season play https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/19/water-polo-leads-ncaa-heading-into-final-weekend-of-regular-season-play/ https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/19/water-polo-leads-ncaa-heading-into-final-weekend-of-regular-season-play/#respond Fri, 19 Apr 2019 08:00:04 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1153034 Top-ranked Stanford women’s water polo (17-1, 5-0 MPSF) will close their regular season with two final home games. No. 9 UC Davis (17-10, 3-2 Big West) will come to town for an evening showdown on Friday, and No. 20 San Jose State (10-12, 2-3 MPSF) will be on tap for Saturday’s Senior Day. The team’s […]

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Top-ranked Stanford women’s water polo (17-1, 5-0 MPSF) will close their regular season with two final home games. No. 9 UC Davis (17-10, 3-2 Big West) will come to town for an evening showdown on Friday, and No. 20 San Jose State (10-12, 2-3 MPSF) will be on tap for Saturday’s Senior Day.

The team’s four senior leaders, Madison Beggren, Kat Klass, Cassidey Wiley and Mackenzie Wiley, will be honored in a ceremony before the clash with the Spartans. In their time on the Farm, the team has enjoyed an 83-14 record, a NCAA Championship in 2017 and two NCAA runner-up finishes in 2016 and 2018.

The Cardinal have already faced both the Aggies and the Spartans earlier in the season. San Jose State fell in a 19-4 massacre in the third contest of the year, and UC Davis did not fare much better, losing in a 17-6 rout a couple of weeks later.

Those high-scoring blowout games have faded from recent memory, as Stanford has been on the ropes in the last few games against three water polo juggernauts in the country. After three matches against USC, UCLA and Cal, the Cardinal emerged with three wins that each had a one-point margin of victory.

The team appears to have weathered that regular season storm, and for their efforts they have the chance to go undefeated in conference play for the first time since 2015 with a win over SJSU. The two previous wins featured late comebacks from opponents after the Cardinal amassed large leads, so these matches will serve to make sure they can tighten up their late-game performance.

Statistically, junior Makenzie Fischer continues to outpace every other offensive threat in the conference with her four goals-per-game average. Sitting at 68 goals on the season, Fischer would have the second-most season goals in school history if she can score eight this weekend. Ellen Estes (1997-98, 2001-02) holds the record with 93 goals over a 35-match season in 1998.

Sophomores Aria Fischer and goalie Emalia Eichelberger are both coming off of career performances against the Golden Bears. Eichelberger posted a career-high 12 saves, and Aria Fischer rattled the cage five times, once more than her previous best.

Catch both games at Avery Aquatics Center. The matchup with UC Davis will begin at 6:00 p.m. on Friday, and the Senior Day ceremonies will take place before the SJSU game, which is slated to begin at 1:00 p.m on Saturday.

Contact James Hemker at jahemker ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Fischer, Klass sisters lift Stanford water polo to fourth straight victory against Cal https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/14/fischer-klass-sisters-lift-stanford-water-polo-to-fourth-straight-victory-against-cal/ https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/14/fischer-klass-sisters-lift-stanford-water-polo-to-fourth-straight-victory-against-cal/#respond Sun, 14 Apr 2019 23:15:02 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1152668 Top-ranked women’s water polo (17-1, 5-0 MPSF) clinched the top seed for the post-season MPSF tournament, defeating No. 5 Cal (13-6, 1-3 MPSF) in a tight 13-12 match on Saturday.

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Top-ranked women’s water polo (17-1, 5-0 MPSF) clinched the top seed for the post-season MPSF tournament, defeating No. 5 Cal (13-6, 1-3 MPSF) in a tight 13-12 match on Saturday. Sophomore Aria Fischer’s career-high five goals helped to lift Stanford in its third straight victory against a top-five opponent.

The Cardinal made goal scoring a family affair, with 12 of the 13 goals coming from the arms of the Fischer sisters or the Klass sisters. This match marked Aria Fischer’s ninth multi-goal game on the season and her eighth hat trick this year.

Junior driver Makenzie Fischer poured in three goals to secure her 13th hat trick of the season. She also moves into sixth all-time on the school’s career goals list (189) and fifth all-time on the single-season goals list (68), besting her previous season’s total by one.

Both Klass sisters found the back of the net two times, marking the tenth multi-goal game for sophomore Sarah and the ninth for senior Kat. Sarah and Aria Fischer are tied for second most goals on the team this season with 35 each, and Kat sits in fourth with 28 tallied scores.

While the 12 goals scored by Cal are the most an opponent has dropped on Stanford this season, redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Emalia Eichelberger was a major reason the Golden Bears were unable to come away with the win. The Cardinal stopped 10 of Berkeley’s 13 power plays, and Eichelberger also posted a new career high in saves with 12.

Aria Fischer found first blood at the 6:43 mark, and a minute later, Kat Klass found her first score. Goals from Makenzie Fischer and freshman Ryann Neushul sandwiched the Golden Bear’s first score and closed the first quarter with a 4-1 Cardinal lead.

Stanford picked up their rate of fire in the second quarter, and Aria Fischer rattled the cage three more times in as many minutes. Kat Klass earned her second goal halfway through the quarter, and Sarah Klass tallied her first point with just under two minutes remaining.

Cal tried to keep pace, scoring three goals over the eight-minute quarter, but a late goal by Makenzie Fischer extended Stanford’s lead to six heading into the half.

Despite building a comfortable lead, the second half proved much more adverse for the Cardinal, who were outscored 8-3. They were unable to convert any offensive possessions into goals until the 3:42 mark in the third when Sarah Klass ended the drought. Makenzie Fischer provided the only other Stanford goal with just 17 seconds left in the frame to go up 12-7.

Cal responded at the start of the fourth quarter by winning the sprint and converting it to a quick goal. The Golden Bears then repeated the effort 90 seconds later to cut the lead to three. Aria Fischer recorded Stanford’s final goal with 3:05 remaining.

Berkeley’s two ensuing possessions proved fruitful and Stanford’s six goal halftime lead had evaporated to just two goals with a little over two minutes remaining. Cal was able to score during a 6-on-5 with 37 seconds left on the clock, but the defense held fast and Stanford emerged with its fourth straight win over the Golden Bears.

This was the second consecutive game that the Cardinal allowed its half-time lead to disappear. In the second half of this match and of the UCLA brawl, Stanford was outscored 14-7. The team will use their two remaining matches to tighten their performance before the MPSF tournament.

The Cardinal return to the Farm to end the regular season next week, hosting No. 9 UC Davis on Friday and No. 21 San Jose State on Saturday.

Contact James Hemker at jahemker ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Golden Bears on tap for women’s water polo https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/12/golden-bears-on-tap-for-womens-water-polo/ https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/12/golden-bears-on-tap-for-womens-water-polo/#respond Fri, 12 Apr 2019 07:20:18 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1152515 Stanford’s No. 1 ranked women’s water polo team (16-1, 4-0 MPSF) prepares to travel across the bay to face off against the No. 4 ranked California Golden Bears (13-5, 1-2) this Saturday at 12PM PST. Stanford is coming off two close wins against rival NCAA championship contenders, outlasting No. 3 ranked UCLA (21-4, 4-1) 7-6 last Saturday and edging out No. 2 USC (21-1, 3-1) 9-8 in overtime the weekend prior. With their toughest opponents behind them, the Cardinal seek to close out the last three games of the regular season.

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Stanford’s No. 1 ranked women’s water polo team (16-1, 4-0 MPSF) prepares to travel across the Bay to face off against the No. 4 ranked California Golden Bears (13-5, 1-2) this Saturday at 12 p.m. PST. Stanford is coming off two close wins against rival NCAA championship contenders, outlasting No. 3 ranked UCLA (21-4, 4-1) 7-6 last Saturday and edging out No. 2 USC (21-1, 3-1) 9-8 in overtime the weekend prior. With their toughest opponents behind them, the Cardinal seek to close out the last three games of the regular season.

The Stanford squad has been dominant on the water all year, obliterating opponents by as many as 21 goals on multiple occasions (in their season opener against No. 11 Long Beach State, and against No. 19 Indiana). The only loss came at the hands of longtime championship rival USC, who claimed victory in the Barbara Kalbus Invitational back in February. That game was tied 7-7 midway through the fourth quarter, before USC went on a three goal run, finishing the game 10-8. Down but not out, Stanford bounced back spectacularly in their second matchup against the Trojans two weeks ago. Junior driver Mackenzie Fischer had three goals in the game, including the only goal between either team in overtime. The win broke USC’s 37-game winning streak up to that point, and helped Stanford claim the coveted No. 1 national ranking, which had previously belonged solely to USC all season.

Last Saturday’s game against UCLA was a nail-biter as well, and the Fischer sisters were the star of the show for the Cardinal, whose combined scoring matched that of the Bruins’ entire team. Makenzie Fischer was the engine of Stanford’s offense, putting in five goals in the game. Sophomore Aria Fischer scored the deciding goal with just five seconds remaining on the clock, giving Stanford the 7-6 victory.

While those last two victories certainly helped boost team morale, the Cardinal must now focus on cross-bay rival UC Berkeley. The two teams have met once so far this season, which resulted in a 17-10 victory for Stanford. While on paper Stanford should have no trouble putting away the Golden Bears, Cal has the home court advantage in a rivalry game, and the Cardinal must remain mentally sharp and focused to prevent any mishap.

After Cal, Stanford will host No. 9 UC Davis (16-10) next Friday at 6 p.m. PST before finishing off the regular season against No. 21 San Jose State (9-12) Saturday at 1 p.m. PST.

Contact Stephen Ren at rensteph ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Water polo survives in thrilling finish against UCLA https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/06/water-polo-survives-in-thrilling-finish-against-ucla/ https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/06/water-polo-survives-in-thrilling-finish-against-ucla/#respond Sun, 07 Apr 2019 05:14:09 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1152066 No. 1 women’s water polo escaped with a 7-6 win over No. 3 UCLA on Saturday. Sophomore Aria Fischer scored the winning goal with just five seconds left to prevent a second consecutive overtime game.

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No. 1 women’s water polo (16-1, 4-0 Pac-12) escaped with a 7-6 win over No. 3 UCLA (20-4, 3-1) on Saturday. Sophomore Aria Fischer scored the winning goal with just five seconds left to prevent a second consecutive overtime game.

The elder Fischer sister, junior Makenzie, provided the bulk of the Stanford offense with five of the seven goals. With those goals, she has tallied 186 through her career, which moves her into seventh place for most career goals by a Cardinal player. Margie Dingeldein (1999-2002) sits in sixth with 187 career goals.

“I was feeling good today,” said Makenzie Fischer. “We are feeling pretty fast as a team and attacking well, and people are finding me so it’s fun.”

Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Emalia Eichelberger recorded six saves on 20 UCLA shots. Stanford attempted 27 shots, 11 of which were blocked by the Bruins’ keeper Carlee Kapana. Despite dropping 10 on the Bruins in a February win, Stanford was held to its lowest offensive output of the season.

“We were expecting a close match today,” said head coach John Tanner. “But it was great to get off to a good start in the game.”

The game opened slowly yet steadily in Stanford’s favor. Makenzie Fischer drew first blood at the 5:28 mark in the first half after the Cardinal stopped a UCLA power play.

Strong defense on both sides prevented any serious shots for three minutes before senior Kat Klass executed a quality lob shot to put Stanford up 2-0. Eichelberger then put an end to another Bruins 6-on-5 attempt to end the quarter.

Almost three minutes into the second quarter, UCLA was stopped again, and Eichelberger threw a long pass in transition to Mackenzie Fischer who made the most of the opportunity with a quick strike for a score.

Even though Stanford was awarded a power play at the end of the half, the offense was unable to convert, and the half ended with the slight 3-0 Stanford lead.

The second half opened to another Cardinal defensive stop, and the team executed a set play, which ended on Makenzie Fischer’s third goal with a second left on the shot clock.

That proved to be the only play in the third quarter that went Stanford’s way. Multiple exclusion penalties and turnovers allowed UCLA to mount a comeback.

“We thought we could stabilize during the third quarter and keep that cushion,” said Tanner. “However, we had a lot of turnovers and we took some poor shots that gave UCLA counterattack opportunities. That really got them in the flow, and then they scored some beautiful goals late to take that lead.”

The first Bruins goal came at 5:29 in the third thanks to a 6-on-5 play where UCLA found their extra woman directly in front of the goal.

Another powerplay at 2:56 let the Bruins cut the lead in half, 4-2. Stanford continued to struggle on the offensive front and the third quarter expired without any more action.

The final eight minutes opened with two more exclusions against the Cardinal. While tough defense prevented the first from amounting to anything, the second exclusion gave UCLA their third goal with 6:30 left in the game.

Two minutes later, the Bruins successfully tied the game, taking advantage of Stanford’s severe offensive drought. UCLA, on the other hand, has found their rhythm and they stole the lead with 2:44 left from a wicked backhanded shot.

The lead didn’t last long thanks to a quick response from Makenzie Fischer during a power play 14 seconds later.

“In that last half of the fourth quarter, the message was to execute our offense as practiced,” Tanner said. “We got into a position to do more with the ball and to have more options, compared to earlier in the fourth and third quarters when we were very one dimensional.”

With less than 90 seconds to go, the Bruins called timeout and it proved productive as they retook the lead with goal number six.

With enough time for two possessions, Stanford called a timeout to plan out their attack.

“We knew we had a minute and a half left, so we were going to get two chances,” Makenzie Fischer said. “We were down one goal, so we were just looking to score one, but then it was pretty awesome that we were able to execute both of our set plays.”

Because of a minor UCLA foul, Makenzie Fischer gained just enough breathing room on the reset to fire a laser. Her fifth and final score tied the game 6-6 at the 52 second mark.

UCLA still had plenty of time to score but the Cardinal defense remained stalwart, and Aria Fischer made the defensive play of the game, stealing the ball with 15 seconds left on the clock.

Hoping to send the game to overtime, UCLA made sure that the older Fischer was locked down. Tragically for the Bruins, they couldn’t keep a lid on both, and Aria Fischer rattled the cage from inside, leaving UCLA only five seconds for a Hail Mary attempt.

After a bizarre stoppage due to clock issues, the Bruins’ miracle shot was easily blocked by Eichelberger and the Cardinal faithful exhaled a sigh of relief.

The Cardinal extended their win streak over the Bruins to five games, and it marks their second consecutive one-point victory against a top-three team. Stanford is also in sole possession of first place in the Pac-12.

“These hard matchups are always fun,” said Makenzie Fischer. “We don’t get a whole lot of opportunities to have really good, close games. It’s hard to emulate in practice, so all this is really good practice for when we play in NCAAs.”

Stanford will return to action for the Big Splash at No. 5 Cal next Saturday.

Contact James Helmer at jahemker ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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Women’s water polo claims top MPSF ranking, takes on UCLA Bruins https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/05/womens-water-polo-claims-top-mpsf-ranking-takes-on-ucla-bruins/ https://stanforddaily.com/2019/04/05/womens-water-polo-claims-top-mpsf-ranking-takes-on-ucla-bruins/#respond Fri, 05 Apr 2019 07:11:27 +0000 https://stanforddaily.com/?p=1151944 Hot off their first win against USC in over a year, the No. 1 women’s water polo team (15-1, 3-0 MPSF) returns home to do battle with No. 3 UCLA (20-3, 3-0 MPSF) on Saturday. After the overtime win against the Trojans, the Cardinal moved out of the No. 2 spot and regained the top ranking in the country for the first time in almost a full year.

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Hot off their first win against USC in over a year, the No. 1 women’s water polo team (15-1, 3-0 MPSF) returns home to do battle with No. 3 UCLA (20-3, 3-0 MPSF) on Saturday. After the overtime win against the Trojans, the Cardinal moved out of the No. 2 spot and regained the top ranking in the country for the first time in almost a full year.

The meeting against the Bruins will be the team’s fifth consecutive ranked matchup. In those last four games, the Cardinal have overwhelmed the competition, outscoring opponents 55-29.

Stanford boasts the most productive offense in the MPSF, averaging 16.81 goals a game. In terms of raw numbers, only USC, who has played in five more contests, has scored more goals (302) than the Cardinal (269).

Six of the top thirteen conference goal scorers (by goals-per-game) all sport the Stanford “S” on their caps. Junior Makenzie Fischer is head and shoulders above the rest of the field, averaging four goals a game, which is more than a goal better than second place.

Currently sitting at 60 goals, Fischer would end with 76 goals if she maintains her average output through the end of the regular season. That figure would be good enough for second-most goals scored in a single season by a Stanford woman.

Sophomores Sarah Klass and Aria Fischer both make the MPSF’s top-ten at seventh and ninth place, averaging 2.06 and 1.93 goals-per-game, respectively. In the past four games, Klass has been relatively quiet with just four goals, but the Fischer sisters have combined for 23 of the 55 goals scored.

Holding spots 11-13 in the conference are sophomore Madison Berggren (1.70), senior Kat Klass (1.67) and freshman Madison Stamen (1.63).

To complement the best offense in conference is the second best defense. Going by goals allowed per game, the Cardinal (5.94) are topped only by the Trojans (4.14). Redshirt sophomore Emalia Eichelberger has been a veritable wall in front of the goal, ranking third in saves per game with 9.36.

The last time Stanford and UCLA met, the Cardinal scored the first five goals en route to a 10-4 victory at the Kalbus Invitational at the end of February. The Bruins last topped Stanford two years ago in the 2017 MPSF Championship game. Stanford then rallied and beat UCLA in the NCAA title game to claim the team’s most recent national championship.

The Bruins have the third best offense and defense in the MPSF, with an average offensive production of 10.83 goals a game and a 6.78 goals against average. Senior goalkeeper Carlee Kapana ranks just ahead of Eichelberger with 9.64 saves per game, while junior Maddie Musselman leads the offensive charge with 2.50 goals per game.

Catch this top-tier MPSF brawl at 3 p.m. in Avery on Saturday.

Contact James Hemker at jahemker ‘at’ stanford.edu.

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