April 3, 2004

BERKELEY, CA - The No. 9 ranked Cal women's water polo team, behind eight different scorers, defeated No. 16 ranked UC Irvine, 8-5, Saturday afternoon at Spieker Aquatics Complex. The Golden Bears improved to 12-10 overall and 3-5 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation. The Anteaters fell to 7-13 and 1-6 in the MPSF.

Cal showed balanced scoring as eight players tallied goals for the Bears. Cal took a 2-0 lead after the first period on a goal by freshman Annie Wight with 6:46 in the opening quarter, followed by a shot by junior Natalie Nelson at 2:53 in the first period. Both teams scored single goals in the second period. Sophomore Breana Allison gave the Bears a 3-0 lead with 50 seconds left in the half, only to see Erica Horman score for UC Irvine with eight seconds left in the first half.

Cal pulled away in the third quarter, outscoring the Anteaters, 3-1, on goals by sophomores Shaina Feldman and Brittani Llorente, and freshman Elsie Windes, for a 6-2 lead. Even though UC Irvine outscored the Bears, 3-2, in the fourth period, Cal had enough cushion for the 8-5 win. Junior All-American Jodie Needles and sophomore Katie Card scored goals for the Bears in the fourth period.

Cal will next travel to Bay Area rival Stanford, Friday, Apr. 9 at 7 p.m. at Avery Aquatic Complex, before hosting San Jose State, Saturday, Apr. 10 at 12 p.m. at Spieker Aquatics Complex.

1 2 3 4 Total
UC Irvine 0 1 1 3 -- 5
California 2 1 3 2 -- 8

UCI Goals: Horman 2, Fernandez,
Kaake, Wedemayer
Cal Goals: Allison, Card, Feldman,
Llorente, Nelson, Needles, Wight, Windes.

Goalie Saves: Dennis (Cal) 5; Chamblee (UCI) 5