Courtesy: USC Athletics
BERKELEY, Calif. – The top-ranked USC women’s water polo team opened MPSF Tournament play with a hard-fought win over No. 4 California, using a strong second half and key counterattack goals to pull away in a high-scoring matchup.
#1 USC 17, #4 California 14
California struck first on a 6-on-5 opportunity and went on to take a 2-0 lead. USC responded as Morgan Netherton and Sinia Plotz found the back of the cage to even things up, while Alma Yaacobi converted a penalty to give the Trojans the lead. Meghan McAninch added multiple steals to help disrupt California’s offense, but the Bears held a slight edge at the end of the first quarter.
USC began to find its rhythm in the second. Emily Ausmus and Maggie Johnson each capitalized on power play opportunities to tie the game, while Anna Reed came up with key saves in the cage to keep it close. Despite the Trojans’ push, California answered late to send the game into halftime in a tight battle.
Out of the break, USC took control. Ava Stryker and Morgan Netherton converted on penalty and 6-on-5 chances, while Rachel Gazzaniga added a power play goal to extend the lead. The Trojans continued to generate stops defensively with field blocks and steals, allowing them to maintain momentum even as California stayed within striking distance.
In the fourth, USC closed it out with composure. Ausmus delivered back-to-back counterattack goals to stop a California run, and McAninch added two late scores to create separation. Yaacobi capped the scoring in the final minute, while Reed and the Trojan defense held strong down the stretch to secure the opening MPSF Tournament win.
Notables
- This is the seventh game this season USC has had four or more players record a hat trick
- The win is the Trojans’ seventh win over a top five opponent
- Ava Stryker recorded a team high six points on two goals and four assists
- The Women of Troy recorded 11 steals with Meghan McAninch and Rachel Gazzaniga each recording a pair
Scoring: Morgan Netherton (3), Alma Yaacobi (3), Emily Ausmus (3), Meghan McAninch (3), Ava Stryker (2), Sinia Plotz (1), Maggie Johnson (1), Rachel Gazzaniga (1)
Saves: Anna Reed (7)
Up Next
The Trojans will face Stanford tomorrow in the MPSF Championship game, which is set for 2:30 p.m..
Courtesy: Cal Athletics
BERKELEY – The No. 4 California women’s water polo team had top-ranked USC in reach late, but the Trojans made a final push to claim a 17-14 MPSF semifinal win today at Spieker Aquatics Complex. MPSF Newcomer of the Year Despoina Drakotou tallied three goals for the Golden Bears in the fourth period and finished with a game-high four in the loss. Cal is now 14-6 overall and heads to tomorrow’s MPSF third-place game against No. 3 UCLA.
The Bears opened strong, punching up the first two goals of the game to put the Trojans on their heels. USC answered back and moved out in front seven minutes into the action, but Cal wouldn’t back down. The Bears equalized on a Maria Bogachenko blast to open the second, then edged out in front when Feline Voordouw struck out of set and then set up Drakotou for a go-ahead strike. Claire Rowell nabbed a takeaway on the defensive end, and then Eszter Varró earned an exclusion for the Bears. Abbi Magee served up an assist to Bogachenko on that possession, and Cal was up 6-4 with 3:53 on the clock. USC would settle back in, though, answering the Bears’ 3-0 run with three of its own to lead things 7-6 at halftime.
The Trojans fired off two quick goals early in the third, and then had a response to each subsequent Cal goal in that frame to take a 12-9 advantage into the fourth. Rosalie Hassett and Drakotou delivered next for the Bears to make it a one-goal game at 12-11 with 4:45 to go. With 2:43 remaining, Cal was down by three before Drakotou found Varró for a blast, then took a setup pass from Holly Dunn for a finish that made it 15-14 with 1:57 on the clock. The Trojans were able to strike at the other end on their next possession, and Cal was unable to break through in the remaining time.
MPSF SEMIFINAL
[1] USC 17, [4] Cal 14
April 11, 2026 | Spieker Aquatics Complex (Berkeley, Calif.)
CAL 2 – 4 – 3 – 5 = 14
USC 3 – 4 – 5 – 5 = 17
SCORING:
CAL – Despoina Drakotou 4, Maria Bogachenko 3, Rosalie Hassett 2, Feline Voordouw 2, Abbi Magee, Holly Dunn, Eszter Varró.
USC – Morgan Netherton 3, Alma Yaacobi 3, Meghan McAninch 3, Emily Ausmus 3, Ava Stryker 2, Sinia Plotz, Maggie Johnson, Rachel Gazzaniga.
SAVES: Talia Fonseca (CAL) 6, Anna Reed (USC) 4.
NEXT: Cal will now play for third place at the MPSF Tournament, taking on No. 3 seeded UCLA at 12:45 p.m. PT tomorrow at Spieker Aquatics Complex. For full tournament results and schedule, visit the Tournament Central page.
NOTABLE:
– With her goal, today Abbi Magee continues to lead Cal with at least one goal scored in 18 games this season.
– With their goals today, Maria Bogachenko (3 goals) and Rosalie Hassett (2 goals) have scored in Cal’s last four games.
– With four goals today, Despoina Drakotou is Cal’s top scorer this season with 43 goals.
– Now with 43 total goals, Drakotou has scored the seventh most goals by a freshman in Cal history
