Stanford, UCLA Lead in Women’s Water Polo Tourney

STANFORD, Cal., February 8. TOP-ranked and defending NCAA champ Stanford plus UCLA are ahead of the pack after Day 1 of the Cardinal women's water polo tournament here this weekend.

The tourney is under way at the Cardinal's Avery Aquatic Center. Both the home team and the Bruins posted two wins each Saturday to stay atop the tournament brackets.

Stanford, led by Player of the Year Brenda Villa, who's also a stellar member of the U.S. national team, defeated UCLA last May at USC's McDonald's Olympic Pool to win the NCAA Championship. The outcome reversed the previous year's results that saw UCLA defeat the Cardinal at Avery.

Stanford improved to 3-0 on the season by handing No. 5 California a 7-4 loss in the second game of the afternoon session. San Jose State's Spartans edged Indiana, 11-9, to improve their tournament standing to 1-1 while Hawaii fell to 0-2.

The top-ranked Cardinal team faces off against Indiana this morning at Avery while Cal and San Jose State match up in the Baker Pool.

UCLA thrashed USC, 8-4, before Hawaii handed UC Santa Cruz a 20-3 loss. The Bruins will play the UCSC Banana Slugs following the Cal-SJSU game at the Baker Pool and the Trojans will face the Hawaii Rainbows in the Avery Pool.

The NCAA Championships are slated for May 10-11 at U Cal San Diego in La Jolla.

— Bill Bell

Saturday – Session 2
Game #5
San Jose State vs. Indiana

Team 1 2 3 4 Total
San Jose State 4 2 2 3 11
Indiana 1 2 1 5 9

San Jose State Scoring:
Beth Harberts 3, Jessica Levins 2, Mary Beth Cox 1, Delores Johnson 1, Deanna Lowry 1, Katie Morgan 1, Laura Scott 1, Christine Welsh 1.
Indiana Scoring:
Kristin Stanford 4, Krista Peterson 3, Courtney Livak 1, Melissa Pietras 1.

Goalie Saves:
Nichole Lipman (SJSU) 9;
Jessica Goldner (Ind) 8.

6-on-5: San Jose State 4-8;
Indiana 4-9.

Penalty Shots:
San Jose State: Laura Scott 1-1;
Indiana: Kristin Stanford 1-1.

Game #6
Stanford vs. California

Team 1 2 3 4 Total
Stanford 2 1 1 3 7
California 1 0 0 3 4

Stanford Scoring:
Hannah Luber 2, Lauren Faust 1, Julie Gardner 1, Kelty Luber 1, Brenda Villa 1, Wendy Watkins 1.
California Scoring:
Katie Card 1, Cara Chlebicki 1, Allison Gold 1, Jodie Needles 1.

Goalie Saves:
Jackie Frank (Stan) 7;
Lauren Dennis (Cal) 9.

6-on-5:
Stanford 2-5;
California 2-5.

Game #7
UCLA vs. USC

Team 1 2 3 4 Total
UCLA 1 3 3 1 8
USC 2 0 1 1 4

UCLA Scoring:
Kelly Rulon 3, Robin Beauregard 1, Natalie Golda 1, Kristina Kunkel 1, Jessica Lopez 1, Ashley Stachowski 1.
USC Scoring:
Sofia Konoukh 2, Eszter Gyori 1, Liz Simms 1.

Goalie Saves:
Jaime Hipp (UCLA) 7;
Kelly Graff (USC) 10.

6-on-5:
UCLA 3-8;
USC 2-7.

Game #8
Hawai'i vs. UC Santa Cruz

Team 1 2 3 4 Total
Hawai'i 7 4 5 4 20
UC Santa Cruz 1 0 1 1 3

Hawai'i Scoring:
Danielle Mulford 4, Lesley Merlo 3, Kristy Bangall 2, Shannon Carroll 2, Beth Novick 2, Miria Whitford 2, Tracy Andersen 1, Margaret Gnadt 1, Erin Kocher 1, Darcy Scott-Hosaka 1, Traci Trochininski 1.
UC Santa Cruz Scoring:
Elizabeth Doerr 2, Sally Hansen 1.

Goalie Saves:
Megan Jefferey (Hawai'i) 5;
Cristina Martinez (UCSC) 3.

6-on-5:
Hawai'i 3-4;
UCSC 0-1.

Name*

Email*

Welcome to our community. We invite you to join our discussion. Our community guidelines are simple: be respectful and constructive, keep on topic, and support your fellow commenters. Commenting signifies that you agree to our Terms of Use