Los Angeles, Calif. - Stanford (23-5) toppled UC San Diego (19-12) in the first semifinal game of the 2002 Men,s Water Polo NCAA Championship at the Burns Recreation and Aquatics Center on the campus on Loyola Marymount University. Junior Mike Derse scored four goals to help the Cardinal advance to tomorrow,s NCAA Championship game at 1:30 p.m. The Cardinal will face California, who defeated Queens College 14-6 in today's second semifinal.
Stanford's leading scorer, sophomore Tony Azevedo, put the first score on the board just over a minute into the game on a pass from senior Jeff Nesmith. Derse followed up with two goals in the first quarter to give Stanford the 3-0 edge. The Tritons tallied their first mark on a four-meter penalty shot by sophomore Jonathan Hopkins. Derse added his third goal of the game with just under four minutes to play in the second half while Stanford freshman Thomas Hopkins (brother of UCSD's Jonathan) took a rocket pass from sophomore Reed Gallogly and added the Cardinal's fifth of the day. With 36 seconds left in the half, Matt Ellis brought the Tritons within three as he fired a goal past his brother, senior Nick Ellis, in the Stanford goal.
The defense for both teams tightened in the third quarter with Stanford sophomore Matt Moser notching the only goal by beating both his defender and the goalkeeper to boost the Cardinal lead back to four. Less than 30 seconds into the final period, though, another Stanford sophomore found the back of the net as Greg Crum took a pass from Gallogly and beat the UCSD keeper for the score. Derse added his fourth goal with five minutes left, bringing his season total to 50, before freshman Peter Varellas posted his first mark of the game to give Stanford a 9-2 lead. The Tritons fought back with three man-up goals in the final three minutes, while Stanford senior Peter Hudnut scored on a pass from Azevedo to give the Cardinal the 10-5 victory.
"We're ready to go," commented Stanford head coach John Vargas on tomorrow's Championship game. "Our guys are excited for the match." Stanford's second leading scorer, Mike Derse added, "Every time we play Cal, everyone goes all out and it's very physically and mentally challenging. I couldn't think of a better way to end the season than to play Cal."
Queens College and UC San Diego will compete for third place in the Consolation Game at noon, while California and the 2001 defending National Champion, Stanford, will be featured in the Championship match at 1:30 p.m.
Game Summary
December 7, 2002
NCAA Championship - Semifinal #1
Los Angeles, Calif.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Stanford | 3 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 10 |
| UCSD | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 5 |
<![if !supportEmptyParas]><![endif]>
Stanford Scoring: Mike Derse 4, Tony Azevedo 1, Greg Crum 1, Thomas Hopkins 1, Peter Hudnut 1, Matt Moser 1, Peter Varellas 1.
UC San Diego Scoring: Matt Ellis 2, Brandon Borso 2, Jonathan Hopkins 1.
Goalie Saves: Nick Ellis (Stan) - 7, Lance Onken (UCSD) - 9.
6-on-5: Stanford 1-3, UC San Diego 3-8.
Attendance: 2,167.