BERKELEY – Sarah Siepker's hat trick was meaningful Saturday, and not just because it helped the No. 4 Cal women's water polo team win an important game.

The fact that it came in the final home game of her career after spending two seasons behind a handful of All-Americans held extra significance for the Golden Bear senior.

Siepker was one of three Cal players to score at least three goals, and the Bears broke open a tie game at halftime for a 14-9 victory over No. 10 Arizona State on Senior Day at Spieker Aquatics Complex.

The Bears closed out the regular season with a record of 15-6 and a fourth-place finish in the MPSF. Cal will be the fourth seed at next week's MPSF Championships at Stanford and open up against fifth-seeded San Jose State on Friday at 2:30 p.m.

Siepker was a starter as a freshman and was named to the MPSF All-Newcomer Team in 2016. But she spent the past two years deferring to All-Americans such as Dora Antal, Anna Illes and Carla Carrega. With the majority of Cal's top players graduating last year, Siepker has been once again called on to play a vital role in the Bears' success, and she has responded.

"Knowing that I made a big impact in my senior game means a lot to me," Siepker said.

Siepker now has 26 goals on the season, which is the same number as her first three years combined. Two of her goals Saturday came in a pivotal third quarter when Cal outscored the Sun Devils 6-2 to take control.

The Bears held a 6-3 lead midway through the second quarter but Arizona State scored the final three goals of the period to tie it at halftime. Siepker scored the first goal of the third period then added another a couple minutes later to push Cal's advantage to 9-7.

"Everyone was kind of frazzled at halftime," Siepker said. "It was a big moment to just calm down and take a breath. We blew a little lead but we tweaked a few things and just started the third quarter like it was 0-0."

Sophomore Brigit Mulder led the Bears with four goals while junior Emma Wright added three. Senior goalie Madison Tagg, playing in the cage for the final time at Spieker Aquatics Complex, had nine saves to give her 434 for her career. She needs just 18 more saves to move into sixth place on Cal's all-time saves list.

Siepker, Tagg and fellow seniors Rachael Lewin, Lauren Charter, Sofia Rivas and Grace Morgan were honored during a pregame ceremony.

"They've adjusted well to my style and building the culture," Cal third-year coach Coralie Simmons said. "I have to commend them because each year has looked different for them. They've continued to inspire and grow and build something here. It hasn't always been perfect but they have a love for water polo every day, and that's first and foremost – they have the desire to be here and love the sport. If you don't have that, you don't have anything. They love the game and they love playing for Cal."

The Bears enter the MPSF Championships playing at a high level. Since almost completely erasing a 10-4 halftime deficit against No. 1 Stanford last Saturday before losing 13-12, Cal has outscored its opponents 41-18 in the last 10 quarters.

"I think we definitely got our mojo back," Siepker said. "We have some good momentum going into the conference tournament. We are in a good place."


No. 4 Cal 14, No. 10 Arizona State 9
ASU 2 4 2 1 – 9
Cal 4 2 6 2 – 14
ASU Goals: Maud Koopman 3, Lieke Rogge 3, Bente Rogge 2, P.J. Allin.
Cal Goals: Brigit Mulder 4, Sarah Siepker 3, Emma Wright 3, Kitty Lynn Joustra 2, Rachael Lewin, Claire Sonne.
ASU Saves: Bridget Johnston 10.
Cal Saves: Madison Tagg 9.