UCLA Wins UC Irvine Invite, Visits USC Saturday
Feb. 27, 2012
MPSF Women's Water Polo Weekly Release - 2/27/12
UCLA (12-1 Overall/1-0 MPSF) won the UC Irvine Invitational with a 5-4 championship victory over No. 1 Stanford, handing the Cardinal their first loss of the season. The Bruins advanced to the title game by defeating No. 2 USC in the semifinals, 8-7, scoring four goals in the final quarter to overcome a 7-4 deficit. Emily Greenwood had four goals in the semifinal. Caitlin Dement totaled 28 Sunday saves. UCLA visits USC in an MPSF game Saturday (Mar. 3).
STANFORD (11-1 Overall/1-0 MPSF) earned a split Sunday, defeating California, 13-5, in the semifinals, before its first loss of the year in the finals to UCLA. Kiley Neushul scored six goals Sunday, bringing her weekend total to a team-leading 12. Fellow freshman Ashley Grossman added five goals Sunday, including four vs. Cal. Stanford returns home for a pair of games against the Big West, hosting Long Beach State Saturday and UC Irvine Sunday
USC (11-2 Overall/1-0 MPSF) won its MPSF opener last Thursday over Hawaii, 12-6, as Monica Vavic recorded four goals. The Trojans went on to take three of four at UC Irvine, including a third-place win over California, 9-6. Dominique Sardo posted a hat trick vs. Cal, totaling four goals on day two, while Flora Bolonyai had nine saves. The Trojans get a quick rematch against the Bruins in a conference home game Saturday.
CALIFORNIA (14-4 Overall/2-0 MPSF) penciled in two victories on the first day at UCI, handing Arizona State its first loss of the year in the process. Cal defeated the Sun Devils (8-5), following a win over UC Santa Barbara (7-3). Remington Price and Ashley Young scored twice each vs. ASU, as did Breda Vosters and Dana Ochsner vs. UCSB. Young added three goals in the third-place loss. The Bears host UC Irvine Saturday.
SAN DIEGO STATE (11-3 Overall/0-1 MPSF) posted three wins against the top-10 in Irvine, defeating No. 8 San Jose State (7-4), No. 5 Arizona State (9-8), and No. 10 Loyola Marymount (9-5). SDSU used a 4-2 fourth quarter vs. ASU for the comeback win. Kelli Campoli accumulated 24 saves in the cage and Meaghan Poland put away seven goals on day two. The Aztecs return to conference action Saturday at Arizona State.
SAN JOSE STATE (8-7 Overall/0-2 MPSF) Dani Curran became the third player in Spartan history to score 200 career goals and found the back of the cage in the team's first overtime game of the season to defeat CS Northridge, 10-9. SJSU also picked up a Saturday win over UC San Diego, 15-11. Curran finished the weekend with 11 goals and Meagan Minson combined for 21 saves on day two. The Spartans play in the Harvard Tournament this weekend.
ARIZONA STATE (14-2 Overall/0-0 MPSF) claimed a pair of wins, 14-12 over UC Davis and 14-5 over Michigan on day two to place seventh. Alicia Brightwell poured in four goals to lead the rout of the Wolverines. Mariam Salloum, Anna Kertes, and Petra Pardi each added hat tricks. ASU hosts the Aztecs Saturday in a conference game.
HAWAII (4-6 Overall/0-2 MPSF) picked up two wins in Irvine, both on the second day, edging Long Beach State (6-4) and UC Davis (7-6). Amarens Genee scored twice in each victory, while Serena Reid combined for 18 saves on day two, 11 vs. the Aggies. The Rainbow Wahine are next in action on Mar. 10 at home against Stanford.
KK CLARK KAP 7 MPSF PLAYER OF THE WEEK
UCLA senior KK Clark (Atherton, CA/Sacred Heart Prep) scored a team-leading nine goals in four games to lead the 2012 UCI Invitational title over the weekend. Clark, who has scored in each of UCLA's 13 games this season, netted three in each of the wins over Cal State Northridge and Michigan. She added one goal in the 8-7 semifinal win over No. 2 USC and two more in the 5-4 championship over unbeaten and top-ranked Stanford.
Also Nominated: Ashley Grossman (STAN); Patricia Jancso (USC); Dani Curran (SJSU)
KILEY NEUSHUL KAP 7 MPSF NEWCOMER OF THE WEEK
Stanford freshman Kiley Neushul (Goleta, CA/Dos Pueblos HS) scored a team-best 12 goals in a runner-up finish at the UCI Invitational. Neushul bagged a pair of hat tricks over the weekend, highlighted by a five-goal performance in Sunday's 13-5 semifinal win over No. 4 California. She added a goal in the championship game.
Also Nominated: Monica Vavic (USC); Emily Donohoe (UCLA)