USC, UCLA Win MPSF Openers
March 7, 2017 MPSF Women's Water Polo Release 8
USC (1-0 MPSF, 19-0 Overall) has matched the national win streak record, taking its 46th straight game with a 14-3 MPSF result at CSU Bakersfield Saturday (Mar. 4). USC raced out to a 6-0 lead by the end of the first quarter. Kelsey McIntosh, Brigitta Games, Maud Megens, and Stephania Haralabidis each scored twice, while Victoria Chamorro collected eight saves. Haralabidis is the MPSF scoring leader with 56 goals (2.95 GPG), while Chamorro has an MPSF-best 2.90 goals-against average. The Trojans face Indiana and Hawaii in Honolulu next time in action (Mar. 16-17), seeking a national win streak record.
UCLA (1-0 MPSF, 12-1 Overall) was up 19-0 after three quarters, en route to a 24-2 MPSF-opening win at San Jose State (Mar. 4). The Bruins turned away all seven of the Spartan power plays. Alexa Tielmann and Maddie Musselman had four goals apiece. Kelsey O'Brien put away a second quarter hat trick, while Aubrie Monahan and Bronte Halligan also added three goals. Kodi Hill had a pair of goals and dished four assists. Carlee Kapana had eight saves in three quarters of cage time. The Bruins host CSU Bakersfield Saturday (Mar. 11) in another conference game.
ARIZONA STATE (0-0 MPSF, 12-3 Overall) won three of four at the Michigan Invitational this weekend (Mar. 4-5), defeating No. 9 Pacific 8-6, Santa Clara 14-2, and Bucknell, 11-0. Lena Mihailovic tallied a Sun Devil high of seven goals through the invitational, including a hat trick against the host school, No. 7 Michigan. She is ninth in the MPSF with 1.93 goals per game. Bente Rogge added five goals through the four games. Arizona State hosts Stanford in its MPSF opener Saturday (Mar. 11), while also hosting Marist and La Verne during the weekend.
CSU BAKERSFIELD (0-2 MPSF, 8-9 Overall) Courtney Wahlstrom collected 15 saves in the USC game (Mar. 4) and 11 at UCSB (Mar. 5). Kristen Jensen scored a hat trick at UCSB, while Nicola Barrett added two goals. The Roadrunners host Azusa Pacific Wednesday (Mar. 8), visit UCLA Saturday (Mar. 11) in MPSF action, before ending the week against Wagner and Chapman at San Diego State Sunday (Mar. 12).
SAN JOSE STATE (0-1 MPSF, 6-11 Overall) fell 24-2 at home to UCLA in its MPSF opener (Mar. 4). The Spartans play four games at the San Diego State Tournament this weekend (Mar. 11-12), facing the host Aztecs and Indiana the first day, followed by Wagner and Whittier on day two. Carla Toha Vilanova is the Spartan scoring leader with 24 goals, ranking 13th in the MPSF.
STANFORD (0-0 MPSF, 11-1 Overall) visits Arizona State in its MPSF opener on Saturday (Mar. 11). The Cardinal placed second at the Barbara Kalbus Invitational, with wins over CSUN 16-5, Michigan 13-5, and California, 12-9. Maggie Steffens put away a tournament-high 13 goals, recording a hat trick in each contest, with a high of four in the semifinals against Cal. She is tied for second in the conference in scoring (2.50 GPG). Makenzie Fischer added 11 goals through the four games, including an MPSF single-game weekend-high of five in the semis.
CALIFORNIA (1-0 MPSF, 12-3 Overall) competes at home on Saturday (Mar. 11) at 2:30 pm against Harvard on Pac-12 Networks. The Bears placed fourth at the Barbara Kalbus Invitational with wins over San Jose State, 13-6, and Arizona State, 10-4. Anna Illes poured in four goals vs. ASU. Dora Antal, who had a hat trick vs. Stanford in the semifinal, is tied for second in the conference in scoring average with 2.50 goals per game.