LOS ANGELES – In a huge win for the Cal men's water polo program, No. 3-ranked Cal upended No. 2-ranked Stanford, 11-7, Sunday in the semifinals of the SoCal Tournament at UCLA's Spieker Aquatics Center. Led by 10 saves from senior goalie Jon Sibley and three goals from freshman standout Luca Cupido, Kirk Everist's squad improved to 17-1 and will now play in the tournament championship match versus USC at 5:55 p.m. Sunday. The Trojans defeated host UCLA, 10-6, in the other semifinal.

The Golden Bears took control of the contest versus Stanford by outscoring the Cardinal, 4-1, in the second period on goals by freshman J.D. Ratchford, sophomore Chandler Jarrels-Stickney, Cupido and junior Colin Mulcahy.

Cal's victory over the Cardinal avenge its only loss of the 2014 season – an 11-8 loss to Stanford in the semifinal of the Kap7 NorCal Classic Sept. 21 in Stockton. The Bears will now play the six-time defending national champion USC, who Cal had defeated, 11-10, in the third-place match of the Kap7 NorCal Classic.

Besides the efforts of Sibley and Cupido, other top performers for the Bears in their win over Bay Area rival Stanford were senior Aleksa Saponjic and Mulcahy with two goals each. Saponjic also led Cal with three assists.

The Bears reached the semifinals by defeating Whittier, 16-3, and Long Beach State, 14-8, on Saturday.