April 22, 2009
MPSF Tournament CentralGame Notes
STANFORD, Calif. - No. 2 Stanford (22-2, 6-1 MPSF) begins action at the MPSF Tournament in Honolulu, Hawai'i this weekend, taking on No. 7 San Diego State in the tournament's quarterfinal opener at 6 p.m. PT at Hawai'i's Duke Kahanamoku Aquatic Center.
About The Opposition
San Diego State (22-9, 1-6 MPSF) enters this weekend's MPSF Tournament on a two-game winning streak after having dropped its previous four contests prior to April 11's victory over Arizona State. The Aztecs recorded their lone conference victory against the Sun Devils that day, then concluded the regular season with a 14-7 victory over crosstown rival UC San Diego this past Saturday.
The Aztecs, coached by Carin Crawford in her 11th season at the SDSU helm, are led in the pool by the play of Anna Gonzales (team-leading 84 goals) and Jenna Schuster (57 goals) while in the cage, Kelly Campoli has made 260 saves on the season.
The Cardinal defeated the Aztecs 11-6 in the only meeting of the teams during the regular season on March 25 in San Diego.
In The National Rankings
The Cardinal dropped to No. 2 in the national rankings in the April 22 edition of the CWPA Division I Poll following its 11-6 loss at USC. Stanford had held the top spot in the rankings for eight straight weeks before Wednesday.
Last Time Out
Stanford had its unblemished MPSF record tainted and its season-best 19-game winning streak brought to a halt this past Saturday, falling 11-6 to No. 2 USC at McDonald's Swim Stadium. An early 3-0 hole proved too much to overcome as the Cardinal was unable to secure the MPSF regular-season title and the top seed at the MPSF Tournament.
The Cardinal was able to chip away at the USC lead in the second period, getting the deficit down to just a goal at 4-3 with 1:36 remaining in the second period, but USC would score five straight goals from that point until early in the fourth period to take control of the contest with a 9-3 advantage.
Freshman Melissa Seidemann scored twice to lead the Cardinal offense, while Amber Oland made six saves in the game.
Stanford At The MPSF Tournament
Stanford has enjoyed a history of success at the MPSF Tournament, having captured the tournament title four times (2000, `01, `03, `06) while posting a runner-up finish in five other occasions (1998, 2002, `04, `05, `07). In fact, since 2000, the Cardinal has failed to reach the tournament final only once, taking third place last season.
Fighting For Position
While it can be safely assumed that Stanford will be going to the National Collegiate Championship in two weeks, what remains undetermined is the Cardinal's position in that eight-team draw. The Cardinal can help its case for a No. 1 overall seed at the championship by capturing the MPSF Tournament title this weekend, as well as earning a victory over USC should both teams reach the tournament final.
Unfamiliar Feeling
Saturday's 11-6 loss at USC was only the second time this season that the Cardinal had tasted defeat. Yet the first time Stanford fell this season, on Feb. 7 against USC, it ran off a 19-game winning streak in response. Also, Stanford's two losses at the moment gives it a chance to end the season with the second-fewest losses ever in one year should the Cardinal go undefeated from this point and win both the MPSF Tournament and the National Collegiate Championship.
Freshman Leading The Way
Melissa Seidemann, with 55 goals so far on the year, is looking to become the fifth freshman, and the fourth true freshman since 1997, to lead the team in scoring. Previous first-year players to lead the Cardinal in scoring are Suze Gardner (1997), Margie Dingeldein (1999), Brenda Villa (2001) and current senior Lauren Silver (2006). The only one of this group that was not a true freshman when she led the team in scoring was Villa, who sat out the 1999 and 2000 seasons to train with the U.S. National Team.
No More California?
The Cardinal's contest at USC on Saturday marked the team's final game in California this season, as for the first time ever (since the NCAA first sponsored a women's water polo national championship in 2001) neither the MPSF Tournament (Honolulu, Hawai'i) or the National Collegiate Championship (College Park, Md.) will be held in California.
Among The MPSF Leaders
Melissa Seidemann's 2.29 goals per game average is seventh in the conference, while Lauren Silver is tied for 12th among all MPSF players with 1.98 goals per game and Kelly Eaton is 17th with 1.57 goals per game. In the cage, Amber Oland is sixth in the conference with 7.25 saves per game, and Kim Hall's 3.77 goals-against average is second-best in the MPSF.
As a team, Stanford's 12.79 goals per game is third in the conference and its 6.58 goals-against average is fourth in the MPSF.