Weather forecasts call for relatively chilly temperatures in Arizona and Southern California this weekend, but it will take a lot more than that to cool off the red-hot Stanford women’s water polo team on its upcoming three-day swing through the Southwest.

The Cardinal (11-1, 4-0 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) hits the road this weekend, slated to play a Friday evening contest at Arizona State, followed by a pair of games on Saturday and Sunday against UC-San Diego and San Diego State. And after posting an impressive 8-4 upset of defending national champion UCLA last Sunday in the Irvine Invitational title game, the Cardinal also has a No. 1 ranking to defend for the first time in nearly four years.

The Stanford women refused to be satisfied with the result of their work last weekend, noting that the next stretch of their schedule will afford them the opportunity to refine critical aspects of their game.

“We know that there’s stuff from the UCLA game we need to improve on,” sophomore driver Lolo Silver said. “[Winning] gave us a new confidence, but three of their four goals came out of two-meters, so we definitely have to work on that.”

Silver recorded nine goals in Stanford’s four games at the Irvine Invitational. A hat-trick against the Bruins pushed her team-leading goal total to 27. Senior goalie Meridith McColl praised the sophomore driver as a key reason for the Cardinal’s early success this season.

“Offensively, we’re playing with panache, which is so fun to see from our girls,” McColl said. “They’ve always been capable of putting some serious dents in the scoreboard, but this year we’re acting like it. I credit Lolo in part — she’s matured in shot selection and improved her accuracy and form, and these things have made her a more potent threat.”

McColl, the anchor of the Cardinal defense, also noted another element of Silver’s play that has been just as valuable as her powerful right arm.

“But her contribution runs deeper [than just her offensive threat],” McColl said. “She is a hustler, not afraid to shoot by any means, and always steps up to take on a challenge. And if she misses, she hauls [tail] back down the pool, meaning she gives up nothing the other way. Granted, she’s just a part of our multi-faceted offense, but the attitude she brings is priceless — and it rubs off on others in practice and in games.”

The Cardinal face off on Friday against a No. 11 Arizona State squad that has endured a tough beginning to its 2007 campaign. The Sun Devils (3-6, 0-1 MPSF) have yet to play a home game this season and will make their first appearance in front of their home crowd against the Cardinal. Led by senior attackers Katie Hedley and Ashley Bower, ASU enters the weekend with the momentum from a 13-11 overtime victory against UC-Santa Barbara. Stanford has faced the Sun Devils once this season, winning 16-7 in the second round of competition at the Stanford Invitational.

After their stop in Tempe, Ariz., the Stanford women travel back to San Diego for two more conference games. The Cardinal first takes on No. 9 San Diego State (7-3, 0-1 MPSF) at the Aztec Aquaplex on Saturday afternoon. The Aztecs’ lone conference loss came in heartbreaking fashion versus No. 7 Hawaii when SDSU nearly pulled off a major upset in Honolulu. After forcing the game into overtime, the Aztecs came up just short, as a Rainbow Wahine goal in the second extra period proved to be the difference. SDSU earned a pair of victories last Sunday to take ninth at the Irvine Invitational, and sophomore Anna Gonzalez paces the Aztec offensive with an average of two goals per game.

Stanford wraps up its weekend on the other side of town against No. 17 UC-San Diego (4-6, 0-0 MPSF). The Tritons were sent reeling by two upset losses on the final day of competition at the Anteater Invitational. The winless weekend was particularly frustrating for the San Diego squad, which had taken seventh place as the host of the Triton Invitational two weeks earlier.