Email this article Printer-friendly format Gabrielle Domanic scored two goals in UCLA's 8-7 win

Women's Water Polo Home HEADLINES Tanya Gandy Named UCLA/Muscle Milk Student-Athlete of the Week UCLA Defeats USC, 6-3, To Win Fourth-Straight NCAA Title Bruins Advance To NCAA Championship Game With 11-4 Win Over UC Davis RELATED LINKS • Follow all of the college water polo action at CollegeSports.com • Email this to a friend

No. 1 UCLA Captures MPSF Tournament Title With 8-7 Win Over No. 3 USC

Courtney Mathewson leads UCLA to victory with three goals

April 27, 2008

SAN DIEGO - Senior Courtney Mathewson scored a team-best three goals to help lead the top-seeded UCLA women's water polo team past third-seeded USC, 8-7, Sunday afternoon and win the MPSF Tournament championship for the second consecutive season.

With the victory, UCLA earned the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, slated to take place May 9-11 at Stanford's Avery Aquatics Center.

UCLA senior Gabrielle Domanic and junior Tanya Gandy each totaled two goals for the Bruins. Junior Katie Rulon also added one goal. USC was led by Alexandra Kiss, who scored two goals.

The Bruins claimed a 3-1 lead after the first quarter and padded their lead, outscoring the Women of Troy by a 3-2 margin in the second quarter to take a 6-3 halftime lead. USC blanked UCLA, 3-0, in the third period to tie the contest at 6-6.

The Women of Troy carried the momentum into the final quarter, taking a 7-6 lead with 6:31 to play. However, UCLA responded with goals from Rulon and Domanic to claim the lead and earn the championship victory.

UCLA junior goalkeeper Brittany Fullen made seven stops in the cage. USC's Tumua Anae registered a game-high 14 saves.

No. 3-seed USC vs. No. 1-seed UCLA

USC Goals: Alexandra Kiss 2, Jordan Anae, Veronika Bartunkova, Forel Davies, Kally Lucas, Michelle Stein
USC Saves: Tumua Anae 14

UCLA Goals: Courtney Mathewson 3, Gabrielle Domanic 2, Tanya Gandy 2, Katie Rulon
UCLA Saves: Brittany Fullen 7