BERKELEY, Calif. – The No. 1 Cardinal fell at No. 9 California this afternoon, dropping the road contest 13-11 to move to 14-2 (2-1) on the season.
Soren Jensen continued his hot scoring streak, scoring twice in the first quarter to give Stanford the 3-2 lead at the first break.
By halftime, Jensen had added three more goals to bring his total to five in the game as the Card led 7-5 at the midpoint. West Temkin made seven saves in the cage during the first half, limiting the California offense.
The Golden Bears opened up the second half with three unanswered goals to take an 8-7 lead. Riley Pittman broke the California run, scoring with 3:24 left in the quarter to level it again at 8-8.
Just a minute later, it was Jensen scoring for the sixth time to regain the lead at 9-8. The six scores ties a Cardinal season best, joining Pittman and Jack Merrill in accomplishing the feat. Jackson Painter converted a penalty another minute lster, extending the lead back to two goals at 10-8. A late goal from California sent the Card into the fourth quarter with a 10-9 lead.
After California scored to even it up at 10 in the fourth, Soren Jensen came up big again. The fifth-year senior rattled home a penalty for his seventh goal to make it an 11-10 lead.
A late rally from the hosts was too much, making it a 13-11 final.
The scoring performance from Jensen brings his season total to 33 – the second-most on the team behind Pittman’s 36.
The Cardinal is at home next, hosting Air Force at Avery Aquatic Center next Friday at 4:00 p.m. PT.
No. 1 Stanford vs. No. 9 California
CAL 2 – 3 – 4 – 4 = 13
STAN 3 – 4 – 3 – 1 = 11
STAN Goals: S. Jensen (7), B. Balogh, A. Gheorghe, R. Pittman, J. Painter
CAL Goals: M. Casabella (5), A. Ponferrada (2), N. Mirkovic, A. Oprea, B. Pardi, M. LaGrange, J. Howerton, W. Kelly