Nov. 27, 2009
MPSF Tournament Central
LOS ANGELES, Calif. - The No. 2 Stanford men's water polo team got its MPSF Tournament off to a fast start Friday, scoring eight first-half goals that carried it to an 11-7 quarterfinal victory over seventh-seeded UC Santa Barbara at USC's McDonald's Swim Stadium in Los Angeles.
The victory advances Stanford (21-2) into Saturday's semifinal round, where the Cardinal will meet an old foe in No. 3 California at 2:30 p.m. The Golden Bears used a second-half comeback to defeat sixth-seeded UC Irvine, 6-5, Friday afternoon.
Freshman Paul Rudolph continued his strong late-season play Friday, scoring four goals to lead all players. Janson Wigo added a pair while individual goals were scored by Andrew LaForge, Travis Noll, Jeffrey Schwimer, Jacob Smith and Drac Wigo.
Goalie Jimmie Sandman stopped six shots to anchor the Cardinal defense in the victory.
Five first-period goals by the Cardinal helped put the Gauchos in a quick hole, as UCSB could only answer with a pair in the opening eight minutes. Stanford would score three more goals to just two for UCSB in the second frame, giving the Cardinal a comfortable 8-4 advantage at the break.
The Gauchos were able to get a goal back in a relatively quiet third period, in which UCSB accounted for the only score.
But Stanford's offense would round back into form to put things away in the fourth, outscoring UCSB 3-2 to secure the four-goal victory and advance to the next round.
UCSB - 2 2 1 2 = 7
Stanford - 5 3 0 3 = 11
Stanford Goal Scorers: Rudolph 4, J. Wigo 2, LaForge, Noll, Schwimer, J. Smith, D. Wigo
UCSB Goal Scorers: Castillo 2, Golic 2, Vincze 2, Partelow
Goalie Saves: Sandman 6 (S); Bunn 10 (UCSB)