By Michael Randazzo, Swimming World Contributor
LOS ANGELES, CA. Riding a game-high three goals from junior Dora Anatal and a suffocating defense anchored by senior netminder Madeline Trabucco that stymied ASU leading scorer Lena Mihailovic, #5 Cal captured a pivotal 9-7 win over #4 Arizona State Friday in the quarterfinals of the 2017 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Women’s Water Polo Tournament.
“Dora is one of those athletes who’s willing to take big shots and take responsibility for those moments,” Cal coach Coralie Simmons said immediately following the match. “She’s fearless and the team is reliant upon her for that.”
With their win, the Bears (15-7, 2-4 MPSF) advance to a Saturday semifinal at 2:30 p.m PST against UCLA (20-1, 6-0 MPSF), the nation’s top-ranked team. By virtue of an undefeated record in conference play, the host Bruins enjoyed a day of rest while the other six MPSF teams battled it out at Spieker Aquatics Center.
In other MPSF quarterfinal action, #2 Stanford (19-2, 5-1 MPSF) beat CSU Bakersfield (12-16, 0-6 MPSF) 14-2 while #3 USC (27-2, 4-2 MPSF) demolished San Jose State 17-2 (10-18, 1-5 MPSF), setting up a semifinal showdown Saturday at 12:45 p.m. PST between the Cardinal and the Trojans.
Cal’s Coralie Simmons. Photo Courtesy: Cal Athletics
The Bears’ coach was understandably elated by her team’s all-around performance.
“This was a big marker for us to show our ability in a well-rounded game,” Simmons said. “We haven’t shown offense, defense and counterattack inclusive in one showing but it was a touch of everything for us [today]—which is what we’ve been waiting for all season.”
No match on day the tournament’s first day was more highly anticipated than the one between the Sun Devil and Golden Bears. The teams had split two previous meetings—Cal took an 10-4 non-conference decision in February at the Barbara Kalbus Invitation, while ASU surprised the Bears last month in Berkeley, eking out a 7-6 win.
Cal’s Madeline Trabucco. Photo Courtesy: Cal Athletics
In a match that had NCAA tournament implications—the loser of Friday’s match would be eliminated from consideration for one of three NCAA Women’s Water Polo Tournament berths—it was the Bears who struck first. Less than a minute into the match sophomore Kacey Adams slipped a skip shot past ASU’s Taylor Barret. The Sun Devils answered halfway through the period on a blast from sophomore Grace Morgan. Antal, who played for Hungary in the 2016 Rio Olympics, put Cal up again with at the 1:46 mark with ASU down a player. But the Sun Devils answered right back with a three-meter strike by Kayla Casas on their next possession.
The two teams traded goals in a defensive-minded second period. Antal again put her team up by a goal, with another man-up strike, while ASU’s Alkistis Banakou scored three minutes later, knotting the match at 3-all going into halftime.
At the break, Simmons, who took the helm of the storied Bears program last September after previous coach stints at Sonoma State University and with the U.S. Women’s National Team, exhorted her team to respond to the challenge. And they did. The Bears outscored the Sun Devils by two in a decisive third period.
“There were a few runs in that game and that was one that put us in a position to control the second half,” Simmons said.
It was Cal’s play with on the man advantage that was the difference. Led by Antal’s three scores the Bears cashed in four times with an extra player. They took the lead for good early with two minutes gone in the third after ASU freshman Bente Rogge was whistled for an exclusion. Senior Genevieve Weed then scored from in front of the Sun Devil cage to put her team up 4-3. A minute later freshman Emma Wright put an emphatic finish on a breakaway, scoring past a diving Barret to give Cal a two goal lead.
Halfway through the period ASU’s Rogge would atone for her exclusion with a power play goal of her own goal against Cal’s Trabucco. But another Wright tally at the 1:53 mark and a tip goal by sophomore Sarah Seipker a minute later gave the Bears a three-goal edge at 8-5.
ASU’s Lena Mihailovic. Photo Courtesy: ASU Athletics
Rogge connected on a five-meter blast on the power play one minute into the fourth quarter to make it a two goal game. Then the Bear defense stiffened. The Sun Devils went the next six minutes without a goal, including a brilliant stop with three minutes left by Trabucco, who soared high to deny Mihailovic’s shot seeking the upper left-hand corner of the Cal cage.
ASU’s top offensive threat final got on the score sheet with 1:30 left, registering her 44th goal of the season with a skip shot past Trabucco, but by then it was too little too late. Antal iced the upset with her program-leading 192nd tally to likely lead Cal to a berth in the NCAAs and more meaningful games in the weeks ahead.
“It’s a fun conference rivalry,” Simmons quipped about playing UCLA, where she was a two-time National Player of the Year (1997, 1998). “We want to get after them in the semis.”