May 11, 2008

Tournament Gallery (Photos by Mark Honbo, UC Davis Athletics)

STANFORD, Calif. - Sophomore driver Kelsey Holshouser and former Davis High standout Heather West each scored three goals to lead No. 2-ranked Stanford to a 15-8 win over UC Davis in Sunday's third-place game of the National Collegiate (NCAA) Championship at Avery Aquatic Center.

The eighth-ranked and fifth-seeded Aggies end their season with a school-record 27-10 record and a fourth-place national finish, the program's highest since achieving varsity status in 1997.

"This obviously was not the best game we've played this year, but you really have to tip your hat to Stanford. They came out aggressively, attacking in front of the goal," said Aggie head coach Jamey Wright. "We gained a little bit of our balance to make it 6-3, but we never got in a rhythm after that."

"As difficult as this game was to look out, it doesn't minimize how great the season was for us. I'm so proud of all the effort and all the work they've put in this year."

Junior attacker Lindsay Kiyama and senior attacker Casie Mota each had two goals to lead UC Davis offensively. Seniors Jessica Soza, Christi Raycraft and Madeline Stephenson also added one goal for the Aggies.

West had two of her three goals in the opening minutes as Stanford exploded to a 5-1 lead after just four minutes of play. Raycraft scored with 2:55 left in the first period, then assisted on Mota's first strike, bringing the tally to 6-3 entering the second.

UC Davis closed the gap to within two goals midway through the second frame. After a Kelly Eaton cross-cage goal extended the Cardinal lead to 7-3, Kiyama scored on a 6-on-5 play then Stephenson hit a lob to cut the deficit to 7-5. However, the Aggies never approached any closer as Stanford answered with three straight to take a 10-5 edge into the halftime break.

"Stanford did an excellent job in getting deep position on us in front of the goal, posting up different people and not waiting to draw a foul. They just took quick shots," said Wright. "That was something we talked about at length in our pregame meetings. They're not real big at center so when the ball comes in, they'll take a quick, explosive shot. It seems everything they shot out of two meters was a quick-release type of thing. It was something we prepared for, but apparently not well enough."

The Cardinal added two more goals in the third period and held the Aggies to 0-for-5 shooting in the third period to pad their lead to seven goals entering the fourth quarter. UC Davis scored on three extra-man opportunities in the final stanza, but Stanford matched that output to take the 15-8 victory.

Stanford goalkeeper Amber Oland recorded 10 saves in net before giving way to freshman Kim Hall late in the fourth.

The national tournament also represented a farewell for eight UC Davis seniors, comprising Raycraft, Mota, Stephenson, Laura Uribe, Jessica Soza, Mary Lowe and Jaclyn Loberg. Six of the eight were fourth-year letterwinners, and five had played substantially in the team's previous trip to the NCAA tournament.

"It's sad to end on a loss, but at the same time I couldn't ask to end the season in a better way," said Mota. "Making the top four at NCAAs is something not many can say they've done. I wish it didn't have to end because our group is so close. We do everything together in and out of the water. It's just such a good feeling to know that we've accomplished something that no one else at our school has done."

UC Davis' previous best finish had been a fifth-placing showing at its own NCAA Championship at Schaal Aquatics Center in 2006. The Aggies also had posted a pair of seventh-place finishes at the USWP Collegiate I Nationals in 1999 and 2000.

NATIONAL COLLEGIATE WOMEN'S WATER POLO CHAMPIONSHIP
Third-place game

GOALS - UC Davis: Lindsay Kiyama 2, Casie Mota 2, Jessica Soza 1, Christi Raycraft 1, Madeline Stephenson 1. Stanford: Heather West 3, Kelsey Holshouser 3, Jacquelyn Gauthier 2, Koree Blyleven 2, Lauren Silver 2, Kelly Eaton 1, Kim Krueger 1, Kira Hillman 1.

GOALIE SAVES - UC Davis: Casey Hines 3 (30:00), Diana Pivacek 0 (2:00). Stanford: Amber Oland 10 (28:38), Kim Hall 0 (3:22).