No. 4 Bears Close Out Home Season On Senior Day
SATURDAY, APRIIL 2
NO. 6 UC IRVINE (15-5) AT NO. 4 CAL (15-2) | 12:30 P.M. PT | SPIEKER AQUATICS COMPLEX | BERKELEY, CALIF.
LIVE STREAM | LIVE STATS
The No. 4 Cal women's water polo team plays its final home game of the season Saturday when it hosts No. 6 UC Irvine at Spieker Aquatics Complex. The Bears will honor their seven seniors before the game in a special ceremony - Emma Wright, Kitty Lynn Joustra, Elli Protopapas, Grace Raisin, Georgia Gilmore, Cynthia Mulder and Carson Broad. The Bears and Anteaters met once previously this season, with Cal enjoying a comfortable 16-8 victory at the Cross Conference Challenge at Arizona State. The Bears are 5-1 at Spieker Aquatics Complex this season, with their lone loss coming against No. 2 UCLA, 9-8, back on March 5.
BEAR NECESSITIES
SENIOR MOMENT
The Bears' senior class, which will be honored before Saturday's final home game of the season, leaves behind quite a legacy at Cal. The seven student-athletes have combined for eight All-MPSF honors, six ACWPC All-America selections, 10 ACWPC All-Academic accolades and four MPSF All-Academic honors. The class also features two Olympians - Emma Wright, who was the co-captain of the 2020 Canadian Olympic team, and Kitty Lynn Joustra, who competed for The Netherlands last summer in Tokyo.
A SEASON TO REMEMBER
At 15-2 with two regular season games remaining, the 2022 season is shaping up to be one of the best in program history. Cal's current winning percentage of .882 is its best all-time, and the Bears have faced a ranked opponent in every game this season. Cal has never won a national championship in women's water polo - it has finished as the runner-up four times.
VOORVELT NAMED MPSF NEWCOMER OF THE WEEK
Freshman defender Rozanne Voorvelt was named the MPSF Newcomer of the Week on Tuesday after helping the Bears register a pair of road wins against ranked opponents. Voorvelt put on a defensive clinic during a 15-5 win at No. 15 Indiana with five field blocks - the most in a game by a Cal player this season. She also added a goal against the Hoosiers, and then pitched in with an assist in a 13-8 victory at No. 7 Michigan. Voorvelt ranks fourth in the MPSF with 12 field blocks and is tied for third on the Bears with 14 assists.
THE WRIGHT SIDE OF HISTORY
Emma Wright will be one of seven Cal seniors honored before Saturday's game, and if she scores at least one goal, she will also move into sole possession of fifth place on the program's all-time scoring list. Wright is currently tied for fifth with Alisa von Hartitzsch with 189 career goals. A three-time All-American and 2020 Olympian, Wright is currently tied for seventh in the MPSF at 3.4 points per game and ninth with 2.1 goals per game.
TURNER ON A TEAR
Junior Cecily Turner is enjoying the most productive stretch of her career, having registered hat tricks in three of her past four games. Turner has 11 goals in the past five games after scoring 12 during her first 11 this season. Her 23 goals this season ranks fourth on the Bears, and she is also fourth on the squad with 14 steals.
IZZY'S TIME
Junior Isabel Williams is having one of the best goalie seasons in Cal history. She leads the conference in saves per game (10.4) and goals-against average (6.82) while ranking second in save percentage (.623). Williams has been named MPSF Player of the Week twice this season and has registered nine double-digit save performances.
ABOUT NO. 6 UC IRVINE
• Anteaters have victories over six top-10 opponents this season
• Three-time All-American Tara Prentice is tied for fourth in the Big West with 46 goals
• Anteaters fell to Cal 16-8 at season-opening Cross Conference Challenge
• CAL ALL-TIME VS. UC IRVINE: 21-3