Cal and UCLA Earn MPSF Wins

3/15/2010 12:00:00 AM

March 15, 2010

CALIFORNIA (18-5 Overall/3-2 MPSF) turned in one of the rarest feats in all of water polo, posting a shutout victory. The Bears took out Marist (11-0) at the Aztec Invitational, in addition to host San Diego State in MPSF action (10-4), Princeton (13-4), and Maryland (14-1). There were a total of six three-goal efforts. Stephanie Schnugg vs. SDSU, Kirsten Mase vs. Marist, Meghan Corso and Elizabeth McLaren vs. Princeton, and Remy Champion and Dana Ochsner vs. Maryland all tallied hat tricks. Cal plays Pacific and Indiana in Stockton, Saturday (Mar. 20).

UCLA (14-5 Overall/2-1 MPSF) won two games last week, 8-5 at defending Big West Champion UC Irvine and 13-6 at home over Arizona State in a conference game. Priscilla Orozco led the Bruins with four goals in each game and moves into the team lead with 27 on the year. Emily Greenwood added a hat trick and Caitlin Dement had 13 saves vs. the Sun Devils. UCLA is off for finals this week and returns home March 27-28 for two MPSF games against Stanford and San Jose State.

SAN DIEGO STATE (13-8 Overall/0-3 MPSF) won three of four in its own Aztec Invitational over the weekend, defeating Wagner (10-4), CS Bakersfield (9-3), and Maryland (10-4). Leanne Ford recorded four goals vs. CSUB and Kimmy Keach had four vs. Wagner. Amber Pezzolla and Meaghan Poland each tallied a hat trick against Maryland. The Aztecs compete at the Loyola Marymount Tournament this weekend.

ARIZONA STATE (12-6 Overall/0-1 MPSF) bounced back from the loss at UCLA to win at Long Beach State, 8-5 this past Sunday. The Sun Devils used a 4-1 run late in the third and into the fourth to put the game away. Nikki Unbehaun and Morgan Leech scored two goals apiece. Conference action resumes at San Jose State Saturday (Mar. 20) and Stanford Sunday (Mar. 21).

STANFORD (16-1 Overall/2-0 MPSF) has been on finals break. The Cardinal scored an 11-2 home win over San Diego State on Mar. 5, as Annika Dries poured in a hat trick. Amber Oland and Kate Baldoni combined for 13 saves in goal. On Mar. 6, the Cardinal made it four straight quarters without allowing a goal, in a 10-4 win over UC Irvine. Mar. 7 wins came against CS Bakersfield (17-1) and UC Davis (11-1), as Kelly Eaton finished with 10 goals for the week and earned her second career MPSF Player of the Week Award. Arizona State visits on Sunday (Mar. 21).

USC (12-1 Overall/2-0 MPSF) is off until March 25 when returning home for a non-conference game with Long Beach State. The Trojans won their second conference game with a 7-4 home decision over California on Mar. 6, extending the win streak to 10. Joelle Bekhazi scored three goals and freshman Patricia Jancso added two in the first half, and was named the MPSF Newcomer of the Week. Goalkeeper Tumua Anae collected 13 saves.

HAWAII (9-6 Overall/1-2 MPSF) next competes Mar. 24 at San Diego State. The Rainbow Wahine is coming off its second-ever win over UCLA on Mar. 6, and the longest game in team history, in a wild six-overtime home-opening win. Monika Eggens scored her only goal as the sudden-victory game-winner in the sixth OT period. Carmen Eggens put away a game-high five goals and Serena Bredin tallied 16 stops in the cage in the 9-8 win.

SAN JOSE STATE (9-8 Overall/1-2 MPSF) is coming off a bye week and hosts three games this week. The Spartans play a doubleheader Wednesday (Mar. 17) against Harvard and Indiana, before returning to the MPSF with Arizona State Saturday (Mar. 20). SJSU has won its last three, taking out Michigan (10-3), San Diego State in a conference game (7-5), and UC Irvine (7-4).

PRISCILLA OROZCO MPSF MIKASA PLAYER OF THE WEEK
UCLA junior attacker Priscilla Orozco (Commerce, CA/Montebello HS) recorded eight goals last week in a pair of wins at No. 13 UC Irvine and at home over No. 6 Arizona State. She tallied four in each game and has taken over the lead in Bruin scoring this year with 27 goals.

EMILY GREENWOOD MPSF MIKASA NEWCOMER OF THE WEEK
UCLA freshman utility Emily Greenwood (Sanger, CA/Buchanan HS) combined for four goals in two wins last week. She scored once at No. 13 UC Irvine, before a hat trick in an MPSF home win over No. 6 Arizona State. Also Nominated: Kirsten Mase (CAL)