STANFORD, Calif. – Makenzie Fischer was named the recipient of the 2019 Peter J. Cutino Award at The Olympic Club on Saturday night. The award, given to the outstanding collegiate water polo player in the United States as voted by Division I coaches, has been won by a Cardinal in six of the last nine years.
A 2016 Olympic gold medalist and two-time NCAA champion, Fischer is the sixth Stanford woman to win the prestigious honor, which was instituted in 1999, joining Kiley Neushul (2015, 2012), Annika Dries (2014, 2011), Melissa Seidemann (2013), Jackie Frank (2003) and Brenda Villa (2002).
The Cardinal's Ben Hallock collected the award on the men's side. It's the fifth time one school has swept both women's and men's Cutino Awards and the third time Stanford has done it. Brenda Villa and Tony Azevedo were the honorees in 2002 and Jackie Frank and Azevedo the following year. USC's Stephania Haralabidis and McQuin Baron were the winners in 2016 and the Trojans' Kami Craig and J.W. Krumpholz won in 2009.
Fischer put together one of the most impressive offensive seasons in MPSF history. The ACWPC National Player of the Year and MPSF Player of the Year scored a league-best 3.50 goals per game, the second-highest average in the conference over the past 15 seasons (Sarah Harris; Pacific; 2007; 3.64).
The junior scored in every one of the 24 games in which she played and poured in a career-high 84 goals, the second-most in Stanford history (Ellen Estes; 1998; 93) and a single-season record for a national champion. Fischer is sixth on Stanford's all-time scoring list with 205 career goals in just 74 games (2.77 goals per game). Estes (1997-98, 2001-02) is next on the list with 214 and Seidemann (2009-11, 13) and Lauren Silver (2006-09) are tied for the school record with 239.
Named the NCAA Tournament MVP, Fischer scored six times at the national championship tournament, including a hat trick in the final against USC. Stanford won its seventh NCAA title and fourth in the past six seasons with a 9-8 victory over the No. 1 Trojans at Avery Aquatic Center on May 12.
