California Golden Bears Athletics
Despoina Drakotou Wins Third Straight MPSF Newcomer of the Week Award
2/3/2026 12:00 PM | Women's Water Polo
Freshman Is Cal's First Three-Time Winner Since 2018.
California women's water polo freshman Despoina Drakotou is the MPSF Newcomer of the Week for the third consecutive week, making her the first three-time honoree since 2018. Her historic honor comes after a historic effort in Cal's recent win over Pacific, as Drakotou scored the second most goals by a Bear in a game with her seven-goal outburst.
Drakotou was a perfect 7-for-7 shooting in Cal's 25-9 victory over No. 17 Pacific. She also added an assist in the win, while her seven goals marked the most in a game by a Bear since 2019 and was just one off the Cal record of eight set in 1997. Only one other Bear has won three MPSF Newcomer of the Week awards in a single season -- Olympian Kitty Lynn Joustra in 2018.
Drakotou has scored multiple goals in every game for the 6-0 Bears and she is the team's top scorer to date with 20 goals.
Drakotou and the Bears have one game on the docket this week, taking a trip to face UC Davis at 12 p.m. on Sunday (Feb. 8).
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