April 28, 2013
MPSF Championship Central
BERKELEY, Calif. - An early five-goal deficit proved to be too much for No. 1 Stanford to overcome as it fell 11-7 to No. 2 USC in the MPSF Championship Final Sunday at Spieker Aquatics Complex in Berkeley.
Despite the loss, Stanford (27-2) is expected to earn one of two available at-large berths into the 2013 National Collegiate Championship when the eight-team field is announced Monday, April 29 at 5 p.m. on NCAA.com. Stanford will go for its third straight NCAA title at the event, which runs May 10-12 at Harvard.
Melissa Seidemann scored three goals for the Cardinal while Kaley Dodson and Kate Baldoni made four saves.
USC's five-goal blitz over the opening period made the difference in the contest. Monica Vavic opened the scoring from the point just 27 seconds into the game and Hannah Buckling added a quick second at the 6:23 mark. Stanford had a chance to stop the early bleeding a minute later when Kiley Neushul drew a five-meter penalty but Steffens' shot was saved by USC goalie Flora Bolonyai.
The Trojans capitalized on the momentum from the save as Vavic came free at the near post and scored before Baldoni could close the angle. It only took another 57 seconds before USC's Kelly Mendoza's skip shot from the point eluded Baldoni to make it 4-0. While the Cardinal offense continued to struggle, USC added its fifth of the period on Buckling's second with 42 seconds to go.
Seidemann would score the first two goals of the second period to pull the Cardinal to 5-2 with 5:57 to go in the half, but USC's offense continued its assault with Anni Espar's shot deflecting off a field player and past Baldoni just over a minute later. The Trojans would add one more before Seidemann netted her third with 3:48 to go to make it 7-3, which is how it would stay at the break.
Stanford would not get any closer the rest of the way as USC kept up the pressure, scoring the first three goals of the second half to extend its lead to 10-3. Stanford would get three straight goals, two of them coming from Steffens, but in the fourth period both defenses dug in and the Cardinal could not break through.
USC - 5 2 3 1 = 11
Stanford - 0 3 3 1 = 7
Stanford Goal Scorers: Seidemann 3, Steffens 2, K. Dodson, Yelizarova
USC Goal Scorers: Buckling 4, Vavic 3, Espar 2, Mendoza, Rosenthal
Goalie Saves: Baldoni 4 (S); Bolonyai 9 (USC)