Nov. 11, 2011

STANFORD, Calif. - Fourth-ranked Stanford men's water polo returns to Avery Aquatic Center this weekend to begin its final homestand of 2011. The Cardinal hosts No. 14 Santa Clara Saturday at 12:30 p.m. and No. 12 UC Davis at 12 noon Sunday.

The Cardinal (16-4, 5-2 MPSF) enters the weekend on a roll, having won seven of its past eight games. Last weekend, Stanford earned a road sweep of MPSF foes Long Beach State and UC Irvine to put itself in position for a top-four seed at the MPSF Tournament, set for Nov. 25-27.

Forrest Watkins scored four goals last weekend, including a pair against UC Irvine that brought the Cardinal even after falling behind, 2-0. Freshman Alex Bowen netted a hat trick in last Saturday's win over Long Beach State while senior Jacob Smith scored three times at UC Irvine.

Bowen leads the team with 46 goals, while Smith and Watkins rank second and third with 33 and 31 goals, respectively.

Senior goalie Brian Pingree boasts a goals-against average of 5.57 while the Stanford defense continues to be ranked among the best in the nation, allowing just 5.45 goals per game.

No. 14 Santa Clara (17-15) has won six of its past nine heading into Saturday, and snapped a three-game slide last Sunday with a win at Chapman. Theo Nasser leads the Broncos with 41 goals while goalie Michael Wishart is averaging 9.37 saves per game.

UC Davis travels to Stanford after hosting No. 3 California Saturday. The Aggies (20-9) are paced by Aaron Salit (68 goals) on offense while goalie Kevin Peat averages 9.8 goals per game.

Stanford will host its final home game of the season next weekend, welcoming California for the Big Splash on Nov. 19.