With 53 seconds left in the fourth period Saturday, sophomore Brian Dudley scored off of a pass from senior Trent Calder to bring the No. 4 Cal men's water polo team within one score of No. 3 Stanford.

In order to tie the game, the Bears (18-7, 4-4 in the MPSF) would need a stop on the next possession. They got the stop in the form of a block from goalie Jacob McIntosh, but instead of getting another offensive opportunity, the Cardinal retained possession.

McIntosh's block sent the ball flying over the cage and out of play, giving Stanford a fresh shot clock.

"All we had to do was run out the clock," Cardinal junior Drac Wigo said. "It was really relieving."

On the reset, Stanford (22-4, 6-2) was able to fend off Cal's press to secure a 9-8 win.

On the other side of the pool, Stanford's win at the Spieker Aquatics Complex was a disappointing moment for Calder. In all four of his playing years at Cal, the co-captain has never won the right to hoist the Steve Heaston Trophy-annually awarded to the winner of the Big Splash-above his head.

The entire week, Calder implored his teammates to help him out and break Stanford's streak of winning the rivalry game. On Saturday, he did everything in his power to help his own cause by leading his team's offensive effort.

Every time the Cardinal was poised to make a run, Calder seemed to be there to break up any momentum. Two of his three scores on the day came off of shots that dramatically rang off the post into the back of the net.

"Everybody is filling in their roles," Calder said. "I've always been a team player. I just stepped up. It wasn't like I chose to score three goals, it's just those opportunities were presented to me. I took them and made them count."

Calder's excellent play highlighted an overall decent outing for the Bears in the eyes of their coach, Kirk Everist. Apart from signs of impatience during six-on-five advantages, the team had a well-rounded game.

Everist highlighted how, unlike in past games, Cal was able to score the opening goal and never fell off the offensive pace.

"There are some good things out there," Everist said. "We didn't get behind, we didn't have to make that big comeback. The guys pretty much played steady the whole game. It was a good defensive game."

Yesterday, the Bears were able to rebound from Saturday's disappointing outcome by topping Pacific (10-20, 0-8) at the Chris Kjeldsen Pool in their final regular-season game.

Cal's next stop will be the MPSF tournament, where it will need to run the table to receive a bid to the NCAA tournament. Continuing that quest for a third national title helps Calder put Saturday's loss in perspective.

"I would have loved to have gone out for a win at my last big home game," Calder said. "In the bigger picture ... last year we lost the Heaston Trophy and we got the ring in the end, so that's more important."

Tags: CAL MEN'S WATER POLO