Nov. 25, 2012
MPSF Championship Central
LOS ANGELES, Calif. - The 2012 campaign came to a tough end Sunday for No. 3 Stanford, as the Cardinal fell 10-9 in sudden-death overtime to No. 2 UCLA in the MPSF Championship Third-Place Game at McDonald's Swim Stadium in Los Angeles.
The Cardinal, which finishes the season 16-7 overall, fought back from a late two-goal deficit to tie things up with 41 seconds remaining in regulation as Nick Hoversten knotted things up at 7-7. Even after UCLA (27-4) took an 8-7 lead into the second three-minute overtime session, Stanford got goals from redshirt seniors Travis Noll and Andrew LaForge to jump ahead 9-8 before UCLA equalized late to send it into sudden death.
There, the Cardinal was unable to score after earning the first possession, a back-handed shot going just wide of the cage. Stanford goalie Scott Platshon would save UCLA's first attempt, but knocking the ball out of bounds kept possession in the Bruins' end. Stanford would be called for an exclusion after it appeared the Cardinal had stolen a pass into the hole, and UCLA's Daniel Lenhart converted just before the 20-second penalty expired, with 1:27 remaining in the period for the win.
The loss leaves the Cardinal with a fourth-place finish at the MPSF Championship after its third straight one-goal decision. Stanford defeated Long Beach State with a golden goal Friday then had its late comeback fall just short in an 11-10 loss to host USC Saturday.
Sunday, freshmen BJ Churnside and Bret Bonanni scored two goals apiece for Stanford, while Hoversten, LaForge, Noll, Alex Bowen and Forrest Watkins each added a goal.
Platshon made 13 saves for the Cardinal in the contest, including a save of a five-meter penalty shot in the third period.
Bowen scored on the 6-on-5 to answer Josh Samuels' early goal in the opening period, as each squad managed a score over the opening eight minutes. UCLA would again jump in front in the second frame, but Churnside would answer with his first with 4:41 to go before halftime, and the half would end knotted up at two-apiece.
Watkins gave the Cardinal its first lead at 3-2 1:40 into the third period, but UCLA would reel off three straight goals from Danny McClintick (twice) and Samuels to jump ahead 5-3. Bonanni would convert a five-meter penalty to stop the bleeding with 1:53 to go in the frame, but the Bruins would answer 20 second later for a 6-4 lead they would take into the final period.
The teams traded goals to open the final frame, and it stood at 7-5 in UCLA's favor as the clock ticked down to two minutes to go. The Cardinal cut the deficit to one behind Churnside with 1:50 to go, then equalized thanks to Hoversten's first of the game.
Chris Fahlsing scored the only goal of the first overtime session, but Noll and LaForge scored with 2:08 and 1:27 remaining in the second overtime to put the Cardinal in front 9-8. The defense held until the final Bruin possession, when UCLA drew Cardinal exclusion and Fahlsing found the far post to tie it up with eight seconds remaining.
Lenhart would then finish off the Bruins' second chance on its first possession of the sudden-death period, ending the Cardinal season.
UCLA - 1 1 4 1 1-1 1 = 10
Stanford - 1 1 2 3 0-2 0 = 9
Stanford Goal Scorers - Bonanni 2, Churnside 2, Bowen, Hoversten, LaForge, Noll, Watkins
UCLA Goal Scorers - Fahlsing 2, McClintick 2, P. Reynolds 2, Samuels 2, Lenhart, White
Goalie Saves - Platshon 13 (S); Rapacz 12 (UCLA)