April 28, 2006
Irvine, Calif. - After enjoying a first day bye in the 2006 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Women's Water Polo Championship, the No. 3 Cardinal went to work on Friday afternoon and defeated the host #6 seed, 7th-ranked UCI, 10-4 in the Anteaters' home pool, the Anteater Aquatics Complex. Senior Scotti Shafer (Carlsbad, CA) and freshman Lauren Silver (Long Beach, CA) scored 4 goals apiece to lead the way for the Cardinal, who never trailed in the match. The win improved Stanford's record to 20-4 overall and 11-2 against MPSF opponents, and the Cardinal next face No. 2 UCLA at 2:45 PM on Saturday afternoon. UCI drops to 18-13 overall and 7-7 in the MPSF and will face No. 7 ASU at 12:15 PM on Saturday.
Stanford held a modest 2-0 lead after one period but eventually stretched their lead to 6-1 by halftime, thanks in large part to Shafer's four goals. Following the break, the Cardinal were not done scoring, as they went up by 6 with the first goal of the second half to make it 7-1. UCI's Jackie Prine then answered back with a score to bring the Anteaters back within 7-2. However, the Cardinal would regain their 6-goal lead with a shot that made it 8-2 heading into the final period.
The Anteaters' Prine opened the fourth frame with a goal to make it 8-3 in favor of the Cardinal, and that's when Stanford's Silver stepped up to put the game away. Silver scored her third and fourth goals down the stretch to give Stanford a commanding 10-3 lead with less than a minute to play. Prine would score her third goal of the match before the game ended, but it was not enough as the Cardinal clinched the 10-4 win.
Junior goalkeeper Meridith McColl (Mission Viejo, CA) tallied 8 saves, while UCI's Lauren Machanis had 11. Fellow juniors Christina Hewko (Newport Beach, CA) and Katie Hansen (Coronado, CA) scored the other 2 goals for the Cardinal. With her scores, Silver retook the team lead with 44 goals; Hansen is not far behind with 41.
Next up, Stanford will take on No. 2 UCLA, who defeated No. 7 Arizona State earlier today, at 2:45 PM on Saturday afternoon in the same pool. The Bruins and Cardinal have faced off twice this season, splitting the season series 1-1. On February 26, Stanford defeated UCLA at the Gaucho Invitational in Santa Barbara 4-2, but UCLA evened the series with a gutsy 9-8 overtime win in their home pool earlier this month. The rubber match between the two schools will have the Conference Title on the line.
MPSF Tournament, 2nd Day
No. 7 UCI (18-13)0112=4
No. 3 Stanford (20-4) 2422=10
Stanford Goals: Shafer 4, Silver 4, Hansen 1, Hewko 1.
Stanford Saves: McColl 8.
UCI Goals: Prine 3, Rossi 1.
UCI Saves: Machanis 11.