STANFORD, Calif. – No. 5 Stanford men's water polo returns to action this weekend with a pair of road matches in Southern California. The Cardinal will face No. 7 UC Santa Barbara on Saturday at noon PT in Santa Barbara, before meeting No. 8 Pepperdine on Sunday at 1 p.m. PT in Malibu.
Winners of five straight, Stanford enters the weekend 11-2 overall. The Cardinal last competed on Oct. 9 at home against San Jose State, posting a 15-3 win over the Spartans. Stanford has also defeated Pepperdine (11-9), Santa Clara, and Long Beach State twice (8-6 and 10-9) during its current winning streak.
The Cardinal's victory over the Waves came in the Mountain Pacific Invitational in Berkeley, California, on Sept. 24.
The sophomore duo of Blake Parrish (35) and Mitchell Mendoza (25) have combined for 60 goals already this season to lead the Cardinal offensively. Junior Cody Smith has added 23 scores on the year. Parrish has scored in all but one match this year, witch multiple scores in 11 contests.
Junior goalie Oliver Lewis is averaging 10.6 saves per match in the cage, to go along with a 6.54 goals-against average.
The Cardinal will play four of its final five matches of the season on the road, beginning with its pair in Southern California this weekend. Stanford will host Pacific in its final home match of the season on Saturday, Nov. 5, at Avery Aquatic Center.