Coming into this past weekend, it was easy to tell that the No. 2 Stanford women's water polo team was excited about its rematch with No. 1 UCLA. Their first matchup had been a classic, as the Bruins pulled out a sudden death overtime victory. As the top two teams in the country duked it out again, everyone was expecting the same intensity and excitement as the first game, and they were correct as the teams produced another memorable match.

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Lauren Silver and the Cardinal could not quite overcome No. 1 UCLA, losing by just two goals. #gallery http://daily.stanford.edu/image/full/8758
Alex Oppenheimer

Lauren Silver and the Cardinal could not quite overcome No. 1 UCLA, losing by just two goals.

Unfortunately for the Cardinal, the result was the same as the first match as well.

Stanford once again fell to the undefeated Bruins, this time by the score of 9-7, which almost mirrors the 8-7 outcome of the teams' first meeting. But there was also good news to come from the weekend, as Stanford picked up three additional victories by the combined score of 40-11.

The team started its So Cal swing on Friday against UC-Santa Barbara. The Gauchos came into the game ranked No. 17 in the nation, but had lost nine straight games. They needed a team to bounce back against, but Stanford was not going to be that team.

The Card started the game on fire, staking a 4-0 lead after one period and doubling it to 8-0 by halftime. The score would run to 10-0 before the Gauchos scored their first goal in the third quarter, and the game would finish at 14-2.

Junior Lauren Silver led the way in the rout, matching her season high of five goals. Fellow junior Kira Hillman was also able to outscore the UCSB team, notching three goals, while sophomore Kelsey Holshouser added two of her own. Freshman Amber Oland had a strong game in the cage, stopping eight shots.

After its dismantling of the first ranked opponent if faced, the Card was ready to face the only team in the nation ranked above them: UCLA. The team had confidence after the way they played the Bruins in their first matchup, and they knew that they certainly had a chance of being the first team to knock them off this season.

Both teams came out on the attack to start the game, each finishing the first period with three goals. The Bruins took control in the second quarter through, shutting out the Cardinal and adding three more goals of their own to bring the halftime score to 6-3.

However, Stanford would not go away. Silver scored back-to-back goals to begin the third period and bring the difference back to one, 6-5. The teams then traded goals before the end of the quarter to make the score 7-6 in favor of UCLA. The Bruins scored first in the fourth period, but Stanford again answered with a goal of its own to make it 8-7.

As hard as it tried though, the Card could not find an equalizer. UCLA was able to add an insurance goal with 3:44 remaining, and the game would end at 9-7. Silver, Hillman, and junior Heather West all ended the game with two goals, while sophomore Alex Koran chipped in with one.

It was another tough loss for the Cardinal, and although they played well again, head coach John Tanner thought the game came down to a few key errors.

"I was pleased with our effort, but we made some significant mistakes at both ends of the pool that led to quality scoring chances for UCLA," said Tanner. "And we didn't make enough plays to bail ourselves out of those situations."

The team did not have time to dwell on missed opportunities though, as they had two more matches to play on Sunday, one against Pomona-Pitzer in the morning, and the other against Claremont-Mudd-Scripps in the afternoon.

The Card took out its frustration on its Division III opponents, winning its first match 11-5 and the second one 15-4. The team showed good offensive balance as nine different players scored in the first game, and 10 in the latter. Freshman Chelsea Smith-Carmichael collected her first hat trick in the second game, while fellow freshman Kim Hall spent most of the day in net, stopping a total of 15 shots.

Overall, it was good for the Cardinal to end the weekend on a winning note, as the team's next game isn't until Mar. 24. And although UCLA was able to prove itself as the top team in the country, Stanford has served notice that this season's race for the title, at the very least, will be a two-horse race.