Sept. 20, 2004
Los Angeles, Ca - The USC Trojans water polo team continued its dominance over the Stanford Cardinal by winning its fifth straight game over the last two seasons. This time, the Trojans, the defending NCAA champion, downed top-ranked and previously unbeaten Stanford, 8-6, on Sunday in the championship game of the Southern California Tournament at USC's McDonalds Swim Stadium.
Trojan goalkeeper Don Ricci registered 12 saves and two-meter defener Juraj Zatovic scored a team-high four goals. Thomas Hopkins led the Stanford attack with three goals while Peter Varellas added a pair of goals.
USC, which defeated Stanford in the NCAA title game last year, had entered the game ranked second in the country. Both teams will renew their rivalry on Sept. 25 (1:30 p.m.) at Stanford's Avery Aquatic Center.
Both teams battled to a 3-3 tie at halftime before Stanford held a 6-4 lead late in the third quarter. A Stanford ejection set up a power play goal by USC's Jordan Van Norman, followed by a Zatovic goal with 44 seconds left to tie the match at 6-6.
In the fourth period, Zatovic scored two more goals as the Trojan defense held the Cardinal scoreless.
The loss dropped Stanford 5-1 while USC upped its season record to 6-0.
Stanford advanced to the championship game with an 8-7 victory over third-ranked UCLA in the semifinals. Greg Crum scored a team-high three goals, including the go-ahead goal in the second period. Josh Hewko scored four goals for the Bruins. Hewko's goal at 37 seconds of the fourth period cut the Stanford lead to 7-6, but Crum added another goal to aid in the victory.
Chad Taylor collected a season-high nine saves.
USC reached the championship game with an 11-6 win over California in the semifinals.
The Southern California Tournament featured 14 of the nation's top 20 teams, including the top seven teams in the nation.
Stanford1230=6
USC2132=8
Stanford Scorers: Hopkins 3, Varellas 2, Garton 1
USC Scorers: Zatovic 4, Hale 1, Delgadillo 1, Shin 1, Van Norman 1
Goalie Saves: Taylor (S) 3; Ricci (USC) 12
UCLA2032=7
Stanford2231=8
UCLA Scorers: Hewko 4, Ormsby 1, Santos 1, Garcia 1
Stanford Scorers: Crum 3, Azevedo 2, Drake 1, Varellas 1, Hopkins 1
Goalie Saves: Taylor (S) 9; Axelrad (UCLA) 6
Southern California Tournament at USC - Sunday's Results
USC 8, Stanford 6 (championship game)
Stanford 8, UCLA 7 (semifinals)
California 10, UCLA 9(3rd place)
UC Irvine 10, Pepperdine 5 (5th place)
UC San Diego 7, UC Santa Barbara 6 (7th place)
Loyola Marymount 8, Long Beach State 7(9th place)
UC Davis 12, Cal Baptist 11 (11th place)
Pacific 9, Air Force 7 (13th place)
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