Dec. 4, 2005

LEWISBURG, Pa. -
The No. 1 seed USC defended its ranking by defeating No. 2 Stanford in a very close 3-2 victory and became the 2005 National Collegiate Men's Water Polo Champions on Sunday afternoon in Bucknell University's Kinney Natatorium. The 3-2 finish marks the lowest scoring championship game in the history of the event.

Each team scored a goal with under 3:30 to play in the first quarter, but it was USC who made the only tally in the second, leading Stanford 2-1 at the half. The third quarter remained scoreless, while the Cardinals managed to tie the Trojan lead at 2 at the 6:02 minute-mark in the fourth, but USC answered with just over three minutes left and kept the Cardinals scoreless for the remainder of the game.

With 18 second left to play, the scoreboard malfunctioned and the remaining time was called aloud by the announcer, and USC thought they won. The Stanford head coach, John Vargas, filed a formal protest and the 18 seconds were placed back on the clock, but the Cardinals were unable to take advantage of their second chance and the clock once again timed out.

Both goalies made a strong showing in their respective nets, as Adam Schilling of the Trojans recorded nine saves and just two goals allowed, while Stanford's Sandy Hohener compiled 11 saves and allowed three scores.

Scoring for USC was Juan Delgadillo, Pavol Valovic and Ted Zepfel, while the Cardinal offense was led by Michael Bury and Peter Varellas, who each had a goal in the loss.

USC, finishing the season 26-1, defeated St. Francis, 14-8, in yesterday's semifinal game, while Stanford (20-7) edged Loyola Marymount 7-6.

GAME SUMMARY

Score by Periods	1	2	3	4	F
Stanford	1	0	0	1	2
USC	1	1	0	1	3

SCORING
USC Goals: Thomas Hale 4, Brandon Child 2, Tommy Corcoran 2, Matt Aksel, Joe Cosentino, Juan Delgadillo, Nik Healy, Juraj Zatovic, Ted Zepfel,.
St. Francis (N.Y.) Goals: Bogdan Petrovic 2, Moran Stern 2, Botond Szalma 2, Gregely Fabian, Milos Vuksic.
Ejections: USC 5, St. Francis 13.
Goalie Saves: USC (Don Ricci 11, Justin McCain 1) 12, St. Francis (N.Y.) (Dusko Radovanac) 6.

First Quarter
SC - Delgadillo, 3:27
ST - Varellas, 3:15
Second Quarter
SC - Zepfel, 6:39
Third Quarter
Fourth Quarter
ST - Bury, 6:02
SC - Valovic, 3:10

QUOTES

Stanford Head Coach John Vargas
On the game... "It was a great defensive game. I couldn't be more proud of how we played."

On the defensive struggle ... "We had our matchups and had the right people on the right guys. We played great team defense, and [goalkeeper] Sandy [Hohener] had a great game."

"We played like we wanted to play in terms of controlling the game. USC did a great job on man-down defense."

Stanford Goalkeeper Sandy Hohener
"We have played [USC] so much in the past that we were able to scout their shooters. We worked hard in practice all week to replicate what they like to do."

USC Head Coach Jovan Vavic
On the low-scoring game ... "I can't believe this game only had five goals, but I love to win games like this. If you asked me if I would rather win 10-9 or 3-2, I would say 3-2."

On the Trojans' man-down defense ... "When we prepare for an opponent we stress the importance of shutting down their extra man."

USC Goalkeeper Adam Schilling
On whether this was the best game of his career ... "It was an NCAA final, and with the gunners like Stanford has, I'd say it was my best game.

"It didn't take long to realize that it was going to be a defensive struggle, so I had to be on top of every shot. In the first half our shot-blocking defense was the key in 5-on-6."

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
First Team
Adam Shilling, USC
Juraj Zatovic, USC
Peter Varellas, Stanford
Endre Rex-Kiss, Loyola Marymount
Thomas Hopkins, Stanford
Juan Delgadillo, USC
Thomas Hale, USC

Second Team
Ian Elliot, Loyola Marymount
Botond Szalma, St. Francis
Sandy Hohener, Stanford
J.J. Garton, Stanford
Tommy Corcoran, USC
Will Hindle-Katel, Stanford
Bogdan Petrovic, St. Francis
Gergely Fabian, St. Francis

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