By Laura Sussman on April 17, 2018

The blazing Arizona sun was mostly covered on Sunday afternoon as No. 1 Stanford Cardinal women’s water polo took on No. 6 Arizona State in Tempe. The clouds must have been a lucky charm for the Stanford squad, who managed to outdo their opponents in a whopping 10-4 victory.

The win was an especially sweet celebration for the seniors honored before the game: 2-meter defender Jordan Raney, driver and 2-meter Shannon Cleary, 2-meter Katie Dudley and fifth-year goalkeeper Julia Hermann.

Olympian sophomore Makenzie Fischer continued her streak of excellence with five goals during the match. Last year, Fischer was second in goals scored by the end of the season, and she currently leads the team with 42 goals. In second is junior driver Kat Klass with 29.

Sunday’s match also saw two goals from both freshman 2-meter Aria Fischer and junior driver Madison Berggren and one goal from Raney.

The first half of the match saw a good fight being put up by both teams, ending 4-2 in favor of the Cardinal. The Sun Devils have had a good season, and this was their last match to practice before the MPSF Tournament.

Still, the away team managed to get its bearings in the third quarter when Fischer scored on a walk-in in the sixth minute. Almost exactly a minute later, another one was put into the back of the net from the left by Aria Fischer on an assist from her older sister. A back-to-back-to-back play was achieved by Berggren when she scored off the right, putting the Cardinal up 7-2.

The momentum built and did not dissipate in the fourth quarter, as the Stanford team continued to push, getting three more goals.

Hermann notched seven saves against the Sun Devils’ tough offensive end.

Stanford’s last regular season game will be held next Sunday against San Jose State. Then, the team will go on to the MPSF Tournament.

Contact Laura Sussman at laura111 ‘at’ stanford.edu