Coming off a third-place performance in last week’s 2005 Daktronics Gaucho Invitational, the No. 3 Stanford women’s water polo team (10-3, 3-1 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) started the weekend looking to maintain its momentum. But even that momentum, combined with seven strong quarters of play in their two games, was not enough to keep the Cardinal from suffering their first conference loss of the year Sunday at the hands of the Long Beach State 49ers.

The Cardinal started the weekend off right, jumping to a 4-0 lead against No. 13 UC-Irvine in the first quarter. The Cardinal were a model of efficiency in the first stanza, converting all three of their six-on-five advantages. Senior captain Kelty Luber netted two of Stanford’s four second-period goals and the Cardinal took an 8-1 lead into the second half.

Junior driver Scotti Shafer and sophomore two-meter Christina Hewko both recorded second-half goals and finished with two goals apiece as the Cardinal cruised to an 11-2 victory.

Sunday, the Cardinal headed to Long Beach to take on the No. 4 49ers; the two teams met the previous week at the Gaucho Invitational. Early on, the rematch looked to be headed in the same direction for the Cardinal. Junior Laurel Champion got Stanford on the board at the 4:16 mark of the first period and Hewko tallied another on a six-on-five opportunity to put the Cardinal ahead 2-0.

After Shafer netted her only goal of the day with 4:58 to play in the second period, the 49ers battled back to tie the game two minutes later. But Champion notched her second goal of the game to give the Cardinal the advantage and the momentum at the half.

The Cardinal and the 49ers played an even third period, with each team scoring once, and the game entered the final period of play with the Cardinal ahead by one. Senior captain Hannah Luber buried her first shot of the day to put the Cardinal ahead by two with just under five minutes to play.

But Long Beach State cranked up its pressure on the Stanford defense and managed to score on consecutive drives to tie the game at 6-6 with three minutes remaining. The 49ers managed to extend their possession scoring streak to three when junior utility Alison Braden found the back of the net with 1:32 left in the game to give Long Beach State its first lead of the game.

The Cardinal had several scoring opportunities in the final seconds of the game but were unable to answer Braden’s goal before the final horn sounded.

“Our loss was definitely disappointing,” Kelty Luber said. “It showed us that we have to play every single possession with all we’ve got, as if it were the last. It came down to Long Beach [State] making some great plays at the end and us not responding with our own.”

While the loss dropped the Cardinal to a 3-1 record in conference play, it did have a silver lining.

“The upside is that because of the loss we’ve all come together stronger and with more spirit,” Kelty Luber said.

The Cardinal have the next two weekends off from competitive play. During that time, they will have the chance to recover and prepare for the second half of their season. Stanford’s spring schedule opens with two tough matchups - No. 8 UC-Santa Barbara on March 24 and defending NCAA Champions No. 2 USC four days later.