Oct. 25, 2007

STANFORD, Calif. - The fourth-ranked Stanford men's water polo team returns to Avery Stadium for the first time in nearly a month for a pair of crucial MPSF games this weekend. Stanford opens up its season-long four-game homestand Saturday at 12 p.m. against the ninth-ranked UC Santa Barbara Gauchos before closing out the weekend by battling the fifth-ranked Pepperdine Waves Sunday at 12 p.m.

The Cardinal (9-5, 1-2 MPSF) has dropped its past two conference contests, most recently falling 7-5 to Long Beach State last Sunday. Yet Stanford did manage to bounce back later on with a 17-6 win Sunday at Occidental College.

Drac Wigo and Sage Wright share the team lead with 20 goals apiece this season, while Will Hindle-Katel (19 goals), Janson Wigo (17) and Andrew Drake (16) follow right behind. The Cardinal got additional contribution last week from Steven Wright, who posted a hat trick against Occidental, and Sam Finlayson, who scored a pair of goals against the Tigers.

In the cage, Sandy Hohener continues to be solid, making 19 saves over last Sunday's two games. For the season, Hohener is making 9.29 saves per game and has allowed only 7.00 goals per contest.

Following this weekend, the Cardinal spend another week at home, hosting the UC Santa Cruz Banana Slugs next Thursday night at 7 p.m., before closing out the homestand with a 1 p.m. contest against UC Davis on Nov. 3, followed by the Alumni Game at 2:15 p.m.