Stanford women’s water polo to open MPSF Championship

The defending NCAA champions will open the MPSF Championship on Friday against San Jose State in Berkeley, kicking off a tournament run that could signal another title march. Stanford is 11-1 overall this season and 5-1 in MPSF play, while San Jose State enters the first-round matchup at 7-15 overall and 0-6 in conference play. 

The Cardinal enter the tournament as the No. 2 seed and is chasing a ninth overall MPSF title and fourth in the past five seasons. If Stanford claims another national title this season, it would be the fourth NCAA championship in five seasons and 11th overall. Stanford is in a prime position to come out on top once again, but the path here has not been perfect.

With only one loss on the season, Stanford’s only trouble came on March 22, when it dropped an 11-10 thriller to the USC Trojans at Avery Aquatic Center. The loss snapped a 19-game winning streak dating back to last season and came on a goal with just 10 seconds left in the game. The defeat was especially painful because it was an NCAA title rematch. Even in a loss, however, Stanford displayed its elite talent. Redshirt juniors Juliette Dhalluin and Jenna Flynn each recorded hat tricks against the Trojans, while redshirt sophomore Serena Browne added two goals in the loss. 

Stanford predictably bounced back from the loss. To wrap up the regular season, the Cardinal rallied from a 5-2 deficit to beat rival Cal 8-7 on Senior Day, a game that will provide momentum for their playoff run. Flynn once again recorded a hat trick, and junior goalkeeper Christine Carpenter came up with several clutch stops in the final minutes of the game to preserve the win. The win served as a fitting home sendoff for senior Maggie Hawkins and senior Jackie King, two veterans who have led Stanford through one of the program’s most successful recent stretches. 

The focus is now on Friday’s matchup, where Stanford will be favored, but they will still have to bring their best game. A win would be an opening step in proving that the Cardinal are capable of becoming back-to-back champs for the second time in the last five years. Friday’s game is set to begin at 11 a.m.

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