March 6, 2010
STANFORD, Calif. - The second-ranked Stanford water polo team got off to a fast start with seven unanswered first-half goals Saturday against No. 13 UC Irvine, and cruised to a 10-4 victory over the Anteaters at Avery Aquatic Center.
The Cardinal (14-1, 2-0 MPSF) won its second straight contest following its first defeat of the year last Sunday. Stanford will complete the weekend tomorrow in Davis, taking on CS Bakersfield at 11 a.m. then closing the day against the 15th-ranked Aggies at 2 p.m.
Kelly Eaton and Alyssa Lo each scored twice to pace the Cardinal, while Cassie Churnside, Annika Dries, Kim Krueger, Pallavi Menon, Melissa Seidemann and Jessica Steffens all added goals to the effort.
In the cage, Amber Oland and freshman Kate Baldoni each played a half, with Oland making three saves and Baldoni stopping six shots.
Stanford put UC Irvine into a deep hole early on, scoring five goals in the opening period to go up 5-0. The scoring attack would continue, as the Cardinal got two more goals in the second frame to open up a 7-0 halftime lead.
For the second straight day, the Cardinal defense was a wall in front of the cage, as the team had held San Diego State scoreless for the final 22:17 of Friday's 11-2 victory.
The Anteaters would break through momentarily with three goals in the third period, but the Cardinal would answer with a pair of its own, and then each team would tally a score in the final period to account for the final score.
Following Sunday's games, Stanford will go on a nearly two-week break for final exams, returning to action at home on March 21 against Arizona State.
UC Irvine - 0 0 3 1 = 4
Stanford - 5 2 2 1 = 10
Stanford Goal Scorers: Eaton 2, Lo 2, Churnside, Dries, Krueger, Menon, Seidemann, Steffens
UC Irvine Goal Scorers: Collyer, Kiene, Klatt, Plummer
Goalie Saves: Oland 3, Baldoni 6 (S); Davis 5 (UCI)