Oct. 21, 2007
LONG BEACH, Calif. - The second-ranked Stanford men's water polo team engaged in a hard-fought MPSF contest against the Long Beach State 49ers Sunday afternoon, coming up on the wrong end of a 7-5 decision. The 49ers (14-7, 1-2 MPSF) broke a 5-5 tie in the fourth period with the game's final two goals to snap the Cardinal's (8-5, 1-2 MPSF) 11-game winning streak against them that dated back to 2000.
Stanford got goals from five different players Sunday, as Andrew Drake, Ryan Fortune, Will Hindle-Katel, Alex Pulido, and Sage Wright all found the back of the cage. Sandy Hohener also made 11 saves on the defensive end for the Cardinal.
Hindle-Katel tallied a goal just 30 seconds into the contest to give Stanford the early advantage, and after the teams traded goals as the period went on, Sage Wright's score gave the Cardinal a 3-2 lead after a period of action.
But the Long Beach defense played its part from that point on, holding the Cardinal scoreless in the second while the offense scored twice to take a 4-3 halftime advantage.
The teams exchanged goals in the third period, before Pulido's score at 5:29 of the fourth equalized the game at 5-5. But the 49ers capitalized on Reid Tomassi's second goal of the game and Jake Kinne's third to capture the win.
Long Beach also converted on four of its six extra-man advantages, while the Cardinal were held to just one 6-on-5 goal in five attempts.
Stanford returns home for the first time in nearly a month next weekend, hosting UC Santa Barbara on Saturday, Oct. 27, and Pepperdine the following day in a pair of MPSF contests. Both games are set for 12 p.m. starts at Avery Stadium.
Stanford (8-5, 1-2 MPSF) 3 0 1 1 - 5
LBSU (14-7/1-2 MPSF) 2 2 1 2 - 7
Stanford Goals: Drake, Fortune, Hindle-Katel, Pulido, Sage Wright
LBSU Goals: Kinne 3, Tomassi 2, Filipovic, Wilson
Goalie Saves: Hohener (S) 11; MacKenzie (LBSU) 15