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Photo by: Tamar Martinez
No. 1 USC Takes Top Seed And 11-Game Win Streak To 2018 MPSF Tournament
April 25, 2018 | Women's Water Polo, Features
WEEKLY RELEASE (PDF)MPSF TOURNAMENT CENTRALUSC SEMIFINAL LIVE STATSLIVE STREAMS (SUBSCRIPTION NEEDED)
Undefeated since March, the Trojans open up the MPSF tourney with a semifinal spot on Saturday in Berkeley.
2018 MPSF Tournament
Spieker Aquatics Complex (Berkeley, Calif.)
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Friday, April 27
Game 1: [3] Stanford vs. [6] San Jose State — 11 a.m.
Game 2: [4] UCLA vs. [5] Arizona State — 12:45 p.m.
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Saturday, April 28
Game 3: Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser — 11 a.m.
Semifinal 1: [1] USC vs. Game 2 winner — 12:45 p.m.   [LIVE STATS]
Semifinal 2: [2] Cal vs. Game 1 winner — 2:30 p.m.
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Sunday, April 29Â
Third Place Game — 11 a.m.
Championship Game — 12:45 p.m.
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MPSFÂ TOURNAMENT CENTRAL PAGEÂ Â | Â LIVE STREAMS (Subscription Needed)
THIS WEEK
USC packs up an 11-game win streak along with the top seed to carry into this week's MPSF Tournament, hosted by Cal at Spieker Aquatics Complex in Berkeley from April 27-29. The top-ranked Trojans (21-1) have secured a first-round bye to take their place in the semifinals, where USC awaits either No. 4 seed UCLA or No. 5 Arizona State in a 12:45 p.m. clash on Saturday (April 28). The championship game is set for 12:45 p.m. on Sunday (April 29), preceded by an 11 a.m. third-place game.Â
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USC IN THE RANKINGS
USC kicked off 2018 ranked No. 2 in the national preseason poll and tied for third in the MPSF preseason poll. USC bounced between No. 2 and No. 3 as the season progressed, and took over as the No. 1 team in the nation on April 18. This week, USC remains No. 1 in the latest national poll (released April 25).
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MPSF RUNDOWN
All six MPSF teams will take part in the 2018 MPSF Tournament at the Spieker Aquatics Complex in Berkeley, Calif. The seedings shake out with USC (21-1) as the No. 1 seed, followed by No. 2 host California (18-4), No. 3 Stanford (16-2), No. 4 UCLA (21-5), No. 5 Arizona State (15-8) and No. 6 San José State (9-17).
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THIS TIME LAST YEAR
USC was the No. 3 seed in last year's MPSF Tournament, carrying a 26-2 overall record into the tournament hosted by UCLA. USC kicked things off with a 17-2 win over No. 6 seeded San José State with 12 different Trojans scoring in the first-round victory. In the semifinals against No. 2 seed Stanford, USC came up just short of the Cardinal, taking a 6-5 loss to move into the third-place game the next day. Up against No. 5 seed Cal, the Trojans fought out of a one-goal deficit in the fourth with three straight USC goals to win it 8-6. USC seniors Brigitta Games and Stephania Haralabidis were named to the MPSF All-Tournament Team after combining for nine goals at the event. USC would go on to earn an at-large berth in the 2017 NCAA Tournament, where the Trojans beat Michigan in he first round before taking another tough one-goal loss to Stanford in the NCAA semifinals to finish 29-4 overall.
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LAST WEEK
USC took total control of its regular-season finale and topped crosstown rival UCLA with a resounding 11-5 win last weekend. After a pregame Senior Day ceremony to honor graduating Trojans Emma Cornwell, Victória Chamorro, Brianna Daboub, Nicola Gonzales, Annika Jensen, Kaitlin Leimbach, Hayley McKelvey and Caitlin Stuewe, USC unleashed a powerful onslaught against the Bruins, led by McKelvey's career-high five-goal outburst on the offensive end. USC reigned supreme in the first period of play, knocking in two impressive goals while rendering the Bruins scoreless with staunch Trojan D. Maud Megens lit the lamp first for the Trojans in taking a pass from Courtney Fahey to finish off a USC counterattack midway through the first, and then USC completed a smooth 6-on-5 earned by Denise Mammolito with a nifty passing series that saw Verica Bakoc find Brianna Daboub for the setup to fellow senior Hayley McKelvey for an acrobatic blast that made it 2-0 Trojans. Goalie Amanda Longan would wrap the first frame with a save against a UCLA power play, and USC's 2-0 lead was intact for the close of the first. In the third, McKelvey and Megens continued to click for the USC offense. McKelvey provided the perfect touch on a lob to catch the UCLA goalie off-balance after a pop from Fahey to make it 3-0 before UCLA was able to break through. Daboub would answer with a huge power move at set to earn a 5-meter penalty shot, which Megens ripped in to make it 4-1 Trojans. In between steals on the defensive end, McKelvey would make it a hat trick in converting a Megens pass on a Trojan 6-on-5 and USC was up a healthy 5-1 for halftime. UCLA would manage back-to-back goals out of the gates in the third to carve down USC's lead to 5-3, only to see the Trojans double that tally and plug in four straight goals to craft a daunt in 9-3 advantage by the end of the frame. Mammolito issued a nearside strike on a 6-on-5 before USC sidestepped a 6-on-4 chance for UCLA with a block by Megens. Another slick passing series had Paige Hauschild find Daboub at set with a look on goal, but the senior opted to pop it out to McKelvey, who made the most of her opportunity with a bullet that took the Trojans to a 7-3 advantage. Next, sophomore Kelsey McIntosh hammered it home on a counterattack, and then McKelvey drilled her fifth of the game with a skipper for a 9-3 USC lead that held to the end of the third. In the fourth, seniors Victória Chamorro and Nicola Gonzales would split time in the cage while Mammolito zipped in her second goal of the night and Hauschild joined the scoresheet on her first shot of the night to help the Trojans round out a final 11-5 win over the Bruins.Â
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NCAA ACTION COMES TO TROY
The National Collegiate Women's Water Polo Championships splash down at USC's Uytengsu Aquatics Center this year as the Trojans look to make their 15th consecutive NCAA appearance. The 10-team field, which includes seven automatic qualifiers from conference championships and three at-large berths, will be announced on April 30. Six teams qualify directly to the championship, and the remaining four teams will compete in Opening Round games on May 5 or 8 to decide the last two championship berths. The final eight-team field will compete at USC, with quarterfinal games set for May 11, semifinals on May 12 and the NCAA Championship game set for 3 p.m. on May 13. For more information and for all-session tickets for the May 11-13 action, visit the NCAA Central page at http://usctrojans.com/sports/2018/3/30/2018-ncaa-womens-water-polo-championship-central.aspx.
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PAIGE STICKS SEVEN
USC freshman Paige Hauschild claimed her seventh MPSF Newcomer of the Week award on April 16 following another week of powerful play for the Trojan cause. Hauschild matches the conference record with her seven Newcomer selections, thanks to an MPSF-record four consecutive picks from March 13-April 3. USC's top scorer this season with 55 goals to date, Hauschild has scored in all but one game in her first year as a Trojan, recording 16 multiple-goal games after her career-high seven goals scored last week. That makes Hauschild the sixth USC true freshman to score at least 50 goals in her first season as a Trojan and gives her the fifth most single-season goals by a USC true freshman. Additionally, her 56 goals scored is the most in the MPSF.
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CLIMB ON
As the 2018 season rolls on, two seniors are making moves on the USC career scoring ladder. On Feb. 11, Brianna Daboub broke into the century club, scoring her 100th career goal. Since then, she's upped her career count to 122 to rank No. 19 all-time in scoring at USC. Fellow senior Hayley McKelvey is also on the climb, having recently cracked the 100-goal barrier to now hold 106 and rank No. 26 all-time at Troy. On the defensive end, two USC goalies are on the rise on the all-time saves ladder. Junior Amanda Longan is now just nine saves away from locking up with Olympian and NCAA champ Tumua Anae at the No. 3 spot as Longan currently sits at No. 4 with 529 career saves. Not far behind is senior Victória Chamorro, who ranks No. 5 all-time with 450 career saves.
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BY THE NUMBERS
On the way into the 2018 postseason, USC has outscored opponents 278-94. Freshman Paige Hauschild is the Trojans' top scorer to date with 56 goals. Behind her on the 2018 scoresheet sits sophomore Denise Mammolito with 35 goals to date, followed by senior Brianna Daboub with 31 and sophomore Maud Megens with 30. Senior Hayley McKelvey is next with 26, while sophomore Kelsey McIntosh grips 24 and Annika Jensen has 21 to her name. Jensen's count marks a new single-season best for the senior. On the defensive end, three goalies have checked into the cage to date. Junior Amanda Longan has logged minutes in 17 games, averaging 11.13 saves and 4.78 goals-against per game. She also boasts back-to-back complete-game shutouts in the cage. Senior goalie Victória Chamorro has appeared in 11 games and averages 9.55 saves and 2.61 goals-against per game. Senior Nicola Gonzales made her first career appearance on Jan. 27, making two saves in one period of work in that USC victory. The Trojan defense has rendered opponents silent in at least one period of play in 17 different games while accumulating a grand total of 33 shutout periods this season so far. Overall, USC is averaging an MPSF-best 12.64 goals per game on the offensive end and is allowing just 4.27 goals-against per game defensively to rank No. 2 in the conference to date.Â
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EVEN BETTER WITH AGE
With a full season under their belts, USC's sophomore class is stepping up big in their second year of action as Trojans. Denise Mammolito has already eclipsed her true-freshman scoring total of 28 goals, standing as USC's second leading scorer this season with 35 goals to date. Kelsey McIntosh also has beaten out her freshman year total of 20 goals, gripping 24 this season to date. Fellow sophomore Maud Megens, meanwhile, is back to her scoring savvy after missing 10 games with injury. She was USC's second leading scorer with 58 goals as a true freshman, and she's pumped in 30 goals in just 12 appearances so far this year, highlighted by a career-high seven goals vs. Pacific. Mammolito, McIntosh and Megens have combined for 84 goals to date — almost a third of USC's total offensive output.
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2018 TROJANS AT A GLANCE
Five All-Americans and seven NCAA champions strong, the 2018 USC women's water polo roster has the experience and the skill to lock up another national championship. This year's arsenal of Trojans boasts a daunting blend of veterans and youth — all armed with the talent and savvy to propel USC to the top. Ranked No. 2 in the land as the 2018 season got underway, USC has trained its focus on that NCAA trophy, which the Trojans last captured in 2016 in an undefeated run through that season. Back in the captains' roles for 2018 are two members of that title-winning team in All-Americans Brianna Daboub and Amanda Longan, who are leading a group of very hungry Women of Troy. Headlining this freshman class is U.S. National Team member Paige Hauschild, who has been a full-time starter for the Trojans. A set of sophomores — Denise Mammolito, Maud Megens and Kelsey McIntosh are also in that mix, along with savvy seniors Daboub and Hayley McKelvey.Â
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CAGE FIGHTERS
USC boasts a fearsome tagteam in the cage in All-American tandem Victória Chamorro and Amanda Longan. Both compete for their respective national teams — Chamorro as a 2016 Olympian with Brazil and Longan as a gold-medalist with Team USA at the recent 2017 FINA World Championships. The Trojan defense allowed just 4.59 goals per game last season, with both Chamorro and Longan averaging over 10 saves per game in the cage. This year, Longan made some Trojan history in anchoring back-to-back shutout wins over LMU and Cal Baptist. Longan is the only USC goalie to record back-to-back complete-game shutouts.
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BACK ON THE ATTACK
A year's experience for last season's freshmen — Maud Megens, Kelsey McIntosh, Denise Mammolito, Elise Stein and Kaylee Brownsberger — along with the leadership of 2016 NCAA champion seniors Victória Chamorro, Brianna Daboub, Hayley McKelvey and Annika Jensen and juniors Amanda Longan, Courtney Fahey and Brooke Presten will raise the bar again for the Trojans. As a true freshman, Megens was USC's second leading scorer with 58 goals. Daboub, McKelvey and Mammolito combined for an even 100 goals. Add to that the depth charge that U.S. National Team member Paige Hauschild and her fellow true freshmen bring for 2018, and USC's attack becomes well-rounded and dangerous. USC also has three new internationals in the water to diversify that attack. Canadians Verica Bakoc and Nina Ceklic are in the mix, along with New Zealand product Nadia Pavlovich. U.S. product Randi Reinhardt also stands out as a key addition to USC's rotation for 2018.
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FIVE-TIME TRITON TITLISTS
USC claimed its fifth straight championship at the Triton Invitational by capping off the event with a 6-4 win over rival UCLA in the title match. The Trojans never once trailed during the tournament, opening with a 13-1 win over Sonoma State and a 14-2 win over San Diego State in group play. In the semifinals, USC played a tighter match against UC Irvine, pulling away for a 7-5 win that sent the Trojans to the title match. During that semifinal win, senior captain Brianna Daboub notched her 100th career goal. Up against UCLA in the final, Paige Hauschild opened the scoring for the Trojans on a 6-on-5 finish. UCLA equalized, but junior goalie Amanda Longan made the stop on the Bruins' next try and then Daboub delivered for a 2-1 USC lead. That would do it for the first frame, but USC struck first again in the second. Kelsey McIntosh took the Trojans to a 3-1 lead before Longan roared to back-to-back blocks and then slammed away a UCLA 5-meter penalty try for a huge boost to the Trojan cause. UCLA moved it to a 3-2 margin by the end of the half, then equalized early in the third, only to see Daboub earn a 5-meter penalty that Denise Mammolito hammered home for a 4-3 USC advantage. In the fourth, Daboub zipped in her second of the game to go up 5-3. Next, Hauschild took a feed from Hayley McKelvey to pad out USC's lead to 6-3. The USC defense would shut down the next few UCLA offensive series, although the Bruins would convert with 3:05 to go, making it 6-4. The stalwart Trojan defense did the rest, as USC closed out the game as a 6-4 win that locked up the Trojans' fifth straight Triton Invitational crown. USC's staunch defense was anchored by goalies Victória Chamorro and Amanda Longan. Chamorro had 14 saves vs. Sonoma State and 13 in the win over UC Irvine, while Longan made 12 vs. SDSU before adding her 11 vs. the Bruins. Amanda Longan would lock up her first career selection as MPSF Player of the Week for her efforts, while Paige Hauschild claimed her second MPSF Newcomer of the Week award after emerging as USC's top scorer with 12 goals at the Triton Invitational.
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SEASON OPENER
USC stormed out of the gates of the 2018 season in churning out an 18-0 shutout of No. 22 LMU in the first official action of the season at the UCLA Mini Invite. Behind seven saves from junior goalie Amanda Longan, the USC defense turned away 10 Lion power play opportunities to help lock up the shutout and make it a 1-0 start to the year. Senior Hayley McKelvey drummed up four goals in the first period of play — all 6-on-5 finishes — to set the tone for the Trojan offensive onslaught. Freshman Paige Hauschild would tally her first goal as a Trojan during the first frame, while Kelsey McIntosh delivered her first of two goals on the day and Maud Megens started off on her path to an eventual game-high five goals for the Trojan cause. Up 7-0 after eight minutes of action, USC received two goals from senior captain Brianna Daboub, two more from Megens and the first career goal as a Trojan for freshman Verica Bakoc to lead it 12-0 by halftime. By the final buzzer, sophomore Denise Mammolito had joined the scoresheet, while Hauschild completed her debut hat trick and Megens round out her five-goal outing. After the impressive showing, Megens was named the MPSF Player of the Week, and Hauschild was selected MPSF Newcomer of the Week.Â
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LAST SEASON
In 2017, the Trojans finished up 29-4 overall with a run to the 2017 NCAA semifinals in USC's 14th consecutive trip to the tourney. USC posted a 4-2 record in MPSF action and went on to claim third in the 2017 MPSF Tournament. The Trojans received a No. 3 seed into the NCAA Tournament, where USC was looking to win back-to-back national championships for the first time in program history. USC would go up against top-seeded Stanford in the semis, coming up just short of a trip to the final with an 11-10 loss. Stephania Haralabidis was USC's top scorer in 2017 with 84 goals. She'd be named a First Team All-American to close out her USC career. Freshman Maud Megens earned Second Team honors, while senior Brigitta Games and sophomore Amanda Longan were Third Team picks, and junior captain Brianna Daboub earned All-America Honorable Mention.•
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