LOS ANGELES – Senior attacker Aleksa Saponjic scored three goals and senior goalie Jon Sibley finished with 14 saves, but No. 3-ranked Cal was edged by six-time defending national champion USC, 10-9, Sunday in the championship match of the SoCal Tournament at UCLA's Spieker Aquatics Center. Kirk Everist's squad – which had defeated Whittier (16-3), Long Beach State (14-8) and No. 2-ranked Stanford (11-7) to reach the tournament final – fell to 17-2.

In the hard-fought final, Golden Bear freshman Luca Cupido scored a goal with 54 seconds left in the match to tie the contest, 9-9. But, the Trojans countered with Mac Carden's game-winning shot with 38 seconds left for the one-goal victory. Cal had comeback from a 4-2 halftime deficit by outscoring the Trojans, 4-3, in the third period to get within one goal, 7-6, entering the final period. Both teams tallied three goals in the fourth quarter.

Cupido was the Bears' second-leading scorer in the contest with two goals, while freshman Conor Neumann had a team-high three assists.

Cal's runner-up finish at the SoCal Tournament was their second solid tournament outing of the year after placing third at the Kap7 NorCal Classic in September.

Earlier Sunday the Bears had upended No. 2-ranked Stanford, 11-7, led by 10 saves from Sibley and three goals from Cupido.

“We are disappointed to not come home with the SoCal championship, but I am very proud of the team's effort and play this weekend,” said Everist. “We are improving and this was a great learning experience for this team.”

Cal will next host UCLA in a televised (Pac-12 Networks) MPSF match on Saturday, Oct. 18 at 10:30 a.m. at Spieker Aquatics Complex.