No. 1 USC Hosts 2018 NCAA Tournament Looking For Sixth Title

2018 NCAA Championships (Uytengsu Aquatics Center | Los Angeles, Calif.)

OPENING ROUNDS: Tuesday, May 8
4:30 p.m. — UC Irvine vs. Pomona-Pitzer
7 p.m. — UC San Diego vs. Wagner

Friday, May 11
12 p.m. — [1] USC vs. UC San Diego/Wagner
1:45 p.m. — [4] UCLA vs. Pacific
3:30 p.m. — [2] Stanford vs. UC Irvine/Pomona-Pitzer
5:15 p.m. — [3] California vs. Michigan

Saturday, May 12
3 p.m. — Semifinal 1
5 p.m. — Semifinal 2

Sunday, May 13
Championship Game — 3 p.m.

TOURNAMENT CENTRAL PAGE

LIVE STREAMS:
May 8 Opening Rounds | May 11-13 Games

THIS WEEK
The No. 1 USC women's water polo team, fresh off a victorious run to the 2018 MPSF Tournament title, will carry a 13-game win streak into the Trojans' 15th consecutive NCAA appearance. The host of this year's National Collegiate Women's Water Polo Championship, USC will look to capture a sixth national championship when the top-seeded Trojans set up camp as the top seeds at their own Uytengsu Aquatics Center for NCAA action running May 11-13. USC (23-1) will open the 2018 NCAA Tournament at noon on May 11, playing the winner of May 8's 7 p.m. Opening Round game between UC San Diego (24-11) and Wagner (24-6). In the other Opening Round game on May 8, Pomona-Pitzer (21-10) will face UC Irvine (14-13) at 4:30 p.m. for the right to play No. 2 seed Stanford (18-3) in a 3:30 p.m. quarterfinal on May 11. The other May 11 quarterfinal matchups are set: No. 4 seed UCLA (22-7) takes on Pacific (18-7) at 1:45 p.m., while No. 3 seed California (19-5) faces Michigan (32-8) at 5:15 p.m.. Winners advance to May 12 semifinal rounds, with the 2018 national championship bout set for 3 p.m. on May 13. All games, May 8-13, will be held at USC's Uytengsu Aquatics Center. Live stats and live stream links are all available at the NCAA Tournament Central page at usctrojans.com/sports/2018/3/30/2018-ncaa-womens-water-polo-championship-central.aspx

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 May 2).

NCAA NOTES
USC has won five national championships in program history, with the first coming in 1999 before the NCAA sponsored women's water polo. In 2004, USC posted the first-ever undefeated season on the way to capturing the 2014 NCAA title. USC's third title came in 2010 — the last time the Trojans swept the MPSF coach, player and newcomer awards — in a championship won over Stanford. Three years later in 2013, the Trojans topped the Cardinal in tripe sudden-death overtime — the longest NCAA final in history — to claim a fourth national championship for USC. In another three years, USC was back on top once more, posting a second undefeated season en route to the 2016 NCAA Championship in another epic battle against Stanford. After a semifinal appearance last year, USC totes a 29-11 all-time record in NCAA tournament games since 2001. This year marks USC's 25th consecutive NCAA appearance and 15th overall, as the Trojans hold a 29-11 all-time record in NCAA tournament play. What's more, the Women of Troy have a chance to register the university's 105th NCAA team championship with a run to this 2018 tourney title.

BRACKET BREAKDOWN
This year's National Collegiate field includes seven automatic qualifiers from conference championships and three at-large teams. Six teams qualify directly to the championship field, and the remaining four teams will compete in Opening Round games, set for May 8 at USC. Those winners will advance to quarterfinal games set for May 11, with semifinals held May 12 and the NCAA Championship game set for 3 p.m. on May 13. All games will be played at USC's Uytengsu Aquatics Center. Earning automatic berths this year — along with MPSF champion USC — are Michigan (CWPA), Pacific (Golden Coast), Pomona-Pitzer (SCIAC), UC Irvine (Big West), UC San Diego (WWPA) and Wagner (MAAC). This year's at-large teams are California, Stanford and UCLA — all out of the MPSF.

THIS TIME LAST YEAR
USC was the No. 3 seed and carried a 28-3 overall record after finishing third in 2017 MPSF Tournament. In Indianapolis for the 2017 NCAA Tournament, USC opened with a 12-6 win over Michigan to earn a semifinal spot against No. 2 seed Stanford. Captain Brianna Daboub would lead USC's scoring in the semis, with the junior tallying a hat trick, but Stanford was able to pull out a heartbreaking 11-10 win to move into the title match, where the Cardinal beat UCLA for the 2017 crown. At the close of the event, senior Stephania Haralabidis was named to the NCAA All-Tournament First Team, and freshman Maud Megens was on the NCAA All-Tournament Second Team after supplying four goals apiece during the tourney.

MPSF CHAMPIONS
After a 5-0 run through the MPSF regular-season action, the Trojans took the top seed into the 2018 MPSF Tournament, hosted by Cal in Berkeley April 27-29. As the top seed, USC had a first-round bye and would square off with No. 4 seed UCLA in the semifinals. Against the Bruins, the Trojans had their underclassmen explode on the offensive end to anchor a 13-10 win. Headlined by MPSF Newcomer of the Year Paige Hauschild's five goals, USC's freshmen and sophomores accounted for 11 Trojan goals. On the defensive end, USC junior goalie Amanda Longan — the MPSF Player of the Year — lived up to her billing with 13 saves in under four periods of work. The next day, against No. 2 seed Stanford in the title match, USC would make the winning final move to beat the Cardinal 13-12 in overtime to claim the Trojans' fifth MPSF Tournament crown. Tied 10 times in regulation, the Trojans and Cardinal had the score snarled even at the end of each period, locked up at 11-11 after four periods of work to bring up OT. In the first overtime stretch, USC's Hayley McKelvey punched in her fourth goal of the game before Hauschild added her first to lift USC ahead 13-11. Stanford would get one to go in the next OT frame, but staunch Trojan defense thwarted the Cardinal's attempts to equalize while goalie Longan made three saves in the last three minutes to help secure the title for the Trojans. At the close of the tourney, sophomore Maud Megens would be named MPSF Tournament MVP, while Paige Hauschild, Amanda Longan and Hayley McKelvey secured spots on the MPSF All-Tournament Team.

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 62 goals to date, Hauschild has scored in all but one game in her first year as a Trojan, recording 17 multiple-goal games including her career-high seven goals scored on March 31. That 62-goal count holds Hauschild strong as the sixth USC true freshman to score at least 50 goals in her first season as a Trojan and gives her the second most single-season goals ever scored by a USC true freshman — three away from tying Moriah Van Norman's 65 scored as a freshman in 2003.

CLIMB ON
As the 2018 season has progressed, two seniors have made major 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 124 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 111 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 recently rose above Olympian and NCAA champ Tumua Anae to take over at the No. 3 all-time spot with Longan's 554 career saves entering this NCAA Tournament. Not far behind is senior Victória Chamorro, who ranks No. 5 all-time with 453 career saves.

BY THE NUMBERS
On the way into 2018 NCAA action, USC has outscored opponents 304-116. Freshman Paige Hauschild is the Trojans' top scorer to date with 62 goals. Behind her on the 2018 scoresheet sits sophomore Denise Mammolito with 36 goals to date, followed by sophomore Maud Megens with 35 and senior Brianna Daboub with 33. Senior Hayley McKelvey is next with 31, while sophomore Kelsey McIntosh grips 28 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 19 games, averaging 11.22 saves and 5.37 goals-against per game. She also is the only USC goalie to boast back-to-back complete-game shutouts. Senior goalie Victória Chamorro has appeared in 12 games and averages 9.86 saves and 2.86 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 4.8 goals-against per game defensively to rank No. 1 in the conference to date.

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 36 goals to date. Kelsey McIntosh also has beaten out her freshman year total of 20 goals, gripping 28 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 35 goals in just 14 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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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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No. 1 USC Hosts 2018 NCAA Tournament Looking For Sixth Title

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