Courtesy: Stanford Athletics
BERKELEY, Calif. – No. 2 Stanford received goals from eight different players and a tremendous defensive effort from Maya Avital, fueling a 16-9 victory over No. 6 California on Saturday afternoon to close out the regular season.
Ryann Neushul scored a game-high four goals while Jewel Roemer added three as Stanford (18-1, 5-1 MPSF) clinched the No. 2 seed in next weekend’s MPSF Championship.
The Cardinal, which has won 13 of the last 14 meetings in the rivalry series dating back to 2018, also defeated the Golden Bears for the fourth time in a season for the first time since 2014. Stanford defeated California 9-6 on Jan. 29 at the Cal Cup in Berkeley, recorded a 14-8 win on Feb. 5 at the Stanford Invitational and posted an 11-6 neutral-site victory on Feb. 25 at the Barbara Kalbus Invitational.
Stanford’s defense was opportunistic and made several clutch plays, led by Avital’s career-high 17 saves. Recording at least 10 saves for the sixth time this season, Avital delivered another strong performance against California and has now made 53 saves over four games in 2023 against the Golden Bears.
Aria Fischer, Jenna Flynn and Sophie Wallace also produced multi-goal performances for the Cardinal.
Leading 5-3 at halftime, Stanford outscored California (17-8, 3-3 MPSF) 11-6 in the second half, highlighted by a seven-goal outburst in the third period.
Lexi Rowell’s goal with 4:45 remaining in the third quarter accounted for Stanford’s 10th goal.
Leading 12-8 entering the third period, Neushul and Fischer put the game out of reach with goals over the first two minutes.
Stanford next faces San Jose State on Friday, April 28, at 11 a.m. in the opening round of the MPSF Championship, with the Spartans also hosting the event.
Stanford Goals: Ryann Neushul (4), Jewel Roemer (3), Aria Fischer (2), Jenna Flynn (2), Sophie Wallace (2), Hannah Constandse (1), Skyler Jones (1), Lexi Rowell (1).
Courtesy: Cal Athletics
BERKELEY – The No. 6 California women’s water polo team got after it in a hard-fought Senior Day game against No. 2 Stanford on Saturday, battling to stay within striking distance before eventually falling 16-9.
Senior Cecily Turner’s flashy hat trick in front of a raucous, packed home crowd at Spieker Aquatics Complex highlighted the day for the Golden Bears (17-8, 3-3) in their regular season finale. Fellow senior Isabel Williams went for nine saves and three steals, while junior Maryn Dempsey put away two nice goals of her own.
The Bears scored more goals than in any of their previous three meetings this season with the Cardinal (18-1, 5-1). More than half of Cal’s goals came in a wild third quarter.
After falling behind 2-0 early, the Bears got on the board with a shot from the outside by senior Shea Salvino, who sized up a stagnant Stanford defense and capitalized on the power play. On the very next play, junior Mara Loughlin drew a second early exclusion on Cardinal standout Jewel Roemer. The Bears worked the ball around and redshirt junior Ruby Swadling found Turner right on the doorstep for a quick strike to tie the game, electrifying both the team and the Bear faithful.
The Cardinal embarked on a 3-0 run into the second quarter, but the Bears fought back. At the 2:55 mark of the period, redshirt freshman Janna Tauscher sealed off her defender to take a pass inside and slid one across the surface of the water into the near right post, making it 5-3 in favor of the visitors at the half.
Both teams came out of the halftime break firing on all cylinders offensively. They combined for 12 of the game’s 25 goals in the third period alone.
Dempsey scored twice in the third, first on a power play and later by stopping on a dime in transition and firing one in from the right wing. Junior Mallory Reynoso also put one in from distance and Turner provided the highlight of the day with an incredible backhand zinger that flew into the top of the net.
In the final seconds of the quarter, Swadling skipped a shot that caromed off the crossbar, but it was redirected right to junior Maddie DeMattia who scored from right in front of goal, sending Cal into the final frame trailing 12-8.
The fourth belonged to the Cardinal, but Turner still sealed her team-leading seventh hat trick of the year, smashing one in on a 6-on-5 midway through the quarter.
The Bears will now look ahead to next week’s MPSF Championships hosted by San Jose State, which take place from April 28-30. Cal takes the No. 4 seed into Friday’s quarterfinal against No. 5 Indiana at 2:30 p.m.
No. 2 Stanford 16, No. 6 California 9
STAN 3 2 7 4 – 16
Cal 2 1 5 1 – 9
Stanford Goals: Ryann Neushul 4, Jewel Roemer 3, Aria Fischer 2, Sophie Wallace 2, Jenna Flynn 2, Lexi Rowell, Hannah Constandse, Skyler Jones
Cal Goals: Cecily Turner 3, Maryn Dempsey 2, Mallory Reynoso, Maddie DeMattia, Shea Salvino, Janna Tauscher
Stanford Saves: Maya Avital 17
Cal Saves: Isabel Williams 9
