No. 4 Stanford rounded out a busy weekend at home with an 11-7 win over No. 5 Pepperdine on Sunday after losing 9-7 to No. 9 UC-Santa Barbara on Saturday. After last weekend, the Cardinal now has a record of 10-6 overall and 2-3 in the MPSF.

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Junior driver Andrew Drake surveys the defense in a recent MPSF match. The No. 4 Cardinal split for the weekend, beating No. 5 Pepperdine after losing to No. 9 UC-Santa Barbara. #gallery http://daily.stanford.edu/image/full/8104
Celeste Noche

Junior driver Andrew Drake surveys the defense in a recent MPSF match. The No. 4 Cardinal split for the weekend, beating No. 5 Pepperdine after losing to No. 9 UC-Santa Barbara.

“The main reason we lost [against Santa Barbara] was just inconsistency. We weren’t making reliable passes, we were struggling in the goal and, at the end of the game when we created some opportunities to score, we didn’t put them away,” said senior two-meter/defender Peter Finlayson. “They played really well, and we didn’t play really well at a high level.”

Stanford began strongly against UCSB as sophomore driver Sage Wright started the scoring with a goal. Senior two-meter/defender Ryan Fortune’s quick score followed right after. UCSB responded with a goal by Ross Sinclair at 3:07, but Wright gave Stanford a 3-1 lead as he netted a goal with under 27 seconds to play in the quarter.

The Gauchos immediately played their attacking game with two scores within the six-minute mark of the next quarter, tying the score at 3-3. An error from the UCSB goalie allowed freshman driver Cody Wiesen to pounce on a scoring opportunity, giving Stanford a narrow lead 4-3 at the half.

In the second half, Stanford’s stringent defense collapsed as the Gauchos scored three quick goals.

Freshman driver Alex Pulido and junior driver Andrew Drake both scored later, however, evening things up at 6-6. From that point on, though, UCSB held the Cardinal to just one goal. The Gauchos stepped up on the offensive end and clamped down defensively to win the game, 9-7.

“Andrew Drake has been playing very well, he’s been stepping it up,” Wright said. “Everyone at practice really helps us a lot because we play well in practice.”

The players returned to the Avery Aquatic Center on Sunday for a game against Pepperdine, and, this time, they successfully snapped their three-game conference losing streak. Drac and Janson Wigo scored two goals each, and Drake performed brilliantly offensively with a hat trick to lead the team to an 11-7 victory.

“[We] pressed on defense. Both teams have pretty good shooters, so the opportunities came on the counter attacks,” Janson Wigo explained. “[I] play utility which plays guard, two-meter man [and] driver, so it’s important to be able to play position.”

In the first quarter, goals from senior two-meter/offense Michael Bury and Drac Wigo opened up the scoring at 2-1. Within the five-minute mark of the second quarter, Janson Wigo and Drake extended the lead to 4-1. Stanford’s offensive streak continued with a pair of goals from Wright and sophomore two-meter/offense Ryan McCarthy. The Cardinal stretched its lead to 10-5 in the fourth and went on to win rather easily, 11-7.

“This last win over Pepperdine was really good for us — they’ve beaten a lot of good teams, and they’ve played a lot of teams really close, so the win restored our confidence,” Finlayson said. “Hopefully, we’ll build our momentum for MPSF games. It’s crunch time now, so we’re taking the rest of the season game-by-game, and each practice is an opportunity to get better.”

Stanford will host UC-Santa Cruz Thursday at 7 p.m. and No. 8 UC-Davis on Saturday. Both games will be played at the Avery Aquatic Center.