The Cardinal swept the competition at its home tournament this weekend. The No. 1 women’s water polo team started its tournament play Saturday bright and early at 8:30 a.m. against No. 6 Michigan at the Avery Aquatic Center. Freshman two-meter Annika Dries started the Cardinal off with a goal, one of five Stanford scored before the Wolverines could get on the board. By halftime, the Cardinal was leading 8-3 and stayed in control throughout the second half as the game ended with a 12-5 victory for Stanford.
Sophomore two-meter Melissa Seidemann shot a whopping total of four goals throughout the match; Dries skipped three into the net; sophomore driver Pallavi Menon scored two goals; senior driver Kelly Eaton, senior driver Kelsey Holshouser, and senior two-meter Alex Koran each had a single goal. Junior goalkeeper Amber Oland saved five shots and freshman goalkeeper Kate Baldoni also recorded a save of her own.
Later on Saturday, the Cardinal faced off against No. 2 USC. Like the morning match, Stanford started the game off strong with a 4-2 lead by the end of the first period. During the second and third periods, each team scored three points, keeping the game close.
In the final period, the Cardinal outscored its opponent 3-2, giving Stanford the 10-7 victory. Eaton and Seidemann each contributed four goals while Holshouser and junior driver Kim Krueger each skipped in a goal. Oland stopped seven shots throughout the game.
On Sunday morning, the Cardinal again started the day early at 8:30 a.m. against No. 7 San Jose State. During the first half, the Cardinal only had a two-point advantage at 7-5, but, during the second half, Stanford dominated and stole a win from the Spartans. In the last two periods, the Cardinal outscored the Spartans 8-1 en route to a 15-6 win. Stanford benefitted from a well-spread offensive attack, with multiple players making offensive contributions.
Dries shot three goals; Krueger, Menon and senior two-meter Jessica Steffens each contributed two goals; sophomore driver Cassie Churnside, freshman driver Vee Denlevie, Eaton, Holshouser, freshman driver Victoria Kennedy, and Koran each shot a single goal. Baldoni had a total of 10 saves.
At 4:30 p.m., the Cardinal played No. 4 UC-Berkeley for the Stanford Invitational Championship title. The Cardinal started off the match more slowly than in the other games this weekend. After the first period, the Bears led 1-0. However, by the end of the second period, the Cardinal took a small 4-3 lead.
During the third quarter, Stanford showed why it is the top team in the nation as it scored five goals.
The fourth quarter solidified the win for Stanford as each team scored once. The final score was a victorious 10-7, making the Cardinal women’s water polo team the champion of the Stanford Invitational.
“We haven’t won this tournament since 2003,” said head coach John Tanner after the match.
Overall, the coach seemed happy with this weekend’s performance with a few minor exceptions.
“We were inconsistent but good at some critical times,” Tanner said. “[Saturday] we really struggled and created and scored some more difficult opportunities. We converted more efficiently [Sunday]. Our one-on-one defense is too spotty.”
Although the defense could have executed better, the team as a whole provided great competition for the other teams.
As seen on Sunday morning, many freshmen and new players were in the pool, while by the end of the day more upperclassmen were playing.
Whether a more experienced player or a new player, each Cardinal woman contributed to the championship.
“When you play four games in two days, people are going to have different energies,” Tanner said.
Winning such a competitive tournament gave Tanner high expectations for the season.
“The bar is set pretty high with our team,” he said. “The tradition of great play and great water polo expectations are high, and I am sure we will be ranked No. 1 again.”
The Cardinal played four games in two days against Michigan, USC, San Jose State University and UC-Berkeley, winning each match. The next match will be at the Avery Aquatic Center on Saturday at 10 a.m. against Sonoma State.