Two years ago, the Cal women’s water polo team fell just short of winning the NCAA tournament. This year, the Bears saw six members of that team graduate en route to one of the more disappointing seasons in recent program memory.
The Bears started this season with high hopes, ranked No. 4 in the country and in MPSF, as well as bringing back seven starters from last year’s team. Also back was three-time All-American senior Emily Csikos, fresh off of helping the Canadian National team qualify for the Olympics.
The Bears (17-7) proved they earned the fourth spot after going 12-2 in the preseason, losing only to Stanford and Arizona State, both of whom were ranked in the top five. Losing to these teams dropped the Bears from a No. 4 to a No. 5 ranking, but Cal was not deterred, determined to make up for it in conference play. Nobody knew that Cal would have trouble with all of the top-four teams, unable to climb from its No. 5 spot for the remainder of the season.
The Bears’ season ended with a fifth place win in the MPSF tournament over No. 6 San Jose State last Saturday. But before that, the crushing loss to UCLA last Friday was the final blow that cut the Bears’ dreams of making it to the NCAA tournament short. Despite the 4-3 loss, Cal managed to accomplish something it had been struggling with all season: playing solid water polo for all four quarters.
A trend with the Bears throughout the season had been their lack of consistency during games against one top-four team in particular. Against UCLA, the Bears finally managed to play solid defense for the entire game. But despite their best efforts, the Bears lost on a UCLA shot that was tipped by a Cal player, resulting in the ball lobbing over goalie Savanna Smith’s outstretched arms.
“(The season) was a tough one, especially for it being my last but I thought we did well,” said senior center Dana Ochsner. “We got better each game we played, and to finish with a really good game against UCLA, it was a good ending.”
Ochsner, fifth on Cal’s leading scorer list for this season, is one of six seniors leaving the Bears.
Csikos is another, who will be leaving Cal after establishing herself as one of the best water polo players to ever play at Berkeley. After helping Cal win second in the NCAA tournament in 2011, Csikos returned to lead the Bears with 49 goals this season. She also managed to break the all-time leading record in goals for the Bears, last set in 1999, with 215 goals in her career.
For six of the players, the end of the season marked the end of their careers at Cal.
“After our game on Friday, we went to the team room, and we had our own team meeting,” said Ochsner. “It was sad, but at the same time, it was good, because we could talk to everyone and just feel like a team for one last time.”
With Cal playing what was arguably one of its best games against UCLA but still losing, the Bears can only look forward to next year. As for the six seniors, it means they will have to leave the sanctuary that was Spieker and root from the stands.
“Being at such an amazing university — and a difficult one at that — it shaped me into being a hard-working person,” said Ochsner. “I’ve learned how to enjoy victories and overcome obstacles. It shaped my character and made me a better person.”
Alicia Fong covers women’s water polo. Contact her at [email protected].