LOS ANGELES – A big third period by No. 1 seed Stanford put the Cal men's water polo team in a position to chase the scoreboard entering the fourth and the third-seeded Bears couldn't make up the difference as they dropped a 12-10 decision to the Cardinal in the championship match of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) Tournament at USC's Uytengsu Aquatics Center.

Cal (18-6) fought through a back and forth first half to take a 6-5 lead by the midway mark. A lob shot by junior Safak Simsek, the hero of Saturday's win over USC, provided the final goal of the half and gave the Bears the momentum heading into the second half.

Stanford (20-2) took the lead in the third period as, despite goals from Odysseas Masmanidis, Jordan Hoover and Jack Deely, the Cardinal outscored the Bears 5-3 to take a 10-9 lead to the fourth.

A Stanford goal with 5:48 left in regulation put Cal down by two but a penalty shot conversion by Hooper brought the Bears within one at the 4:23 mark. Stanford was awarded a penalty shot of its own with 3:59 remaining and the Cardinal converted to provide the game's final margin.

Hooper, Hoover and Masmanidis scored two goals each to lead the Bears on the scoresheet. Spencer Farrar, Safak Simsek, Miles O'Brien-Schridde and Jack Deely all netted one apiece. Bernardo Carelli made seven saves in goal.

Cal now awaits its fate as the NCAA Championships field is announced on Monday via press release. The announcement will be made on NCAA.com as Cal vies for an at-large spot in the tournament, which will be held Dec. 1-2 at Stanford with play-in games preceding the final weekend.