STAY POSTEDFor further coverage of Cal women’s water polo, follow the Bears on Twitter (@CalWWPolo), Instagram (@calwwpolo) and Facebook (CalWomensWaterPolo). The No. 3 California women’s water polo team heads on the road for the second time this season to face San Jose State and Pacific Saturday at the Aggie Invite hosted by UC Davis. The […]
For further coverage of Cal women’s water polo, follow the Bears on Twitter (@CalWWPolo), Instagram (@calwwpolo) and Facebook (CalWomensWaterPolo).
The No. 3 California women’s water polo team heads on the road for the second time this season to face San Jose State and Pacific Saturday at the Aggie Invite hosted by UC Davis. The Golden Bears had a week off after completing a 5-0 start to the season, most recently defeating No. 6 Fresno State 17-10 and No. 8 Long Beach State 16-11 at the Cal Cup on Jan. 25-26. Ruby Swadling led the way with nine goals over the two games. Cal has now started out 5-0 or better in four of the last five seasons.
NO. 3 CAL (5-0) VS NO. 18 PACIFIC (4-0) | 2 PM PT
LIVE STATS
FLYNN ON FIRE
Flynn finished second on the team in 2024 with 44 goals in a dazzling debut season after transferring from UC Irvine, resulting in a third consecutive All-America selection. She opened the year with a pair of four-goal outings and heads into week three of the season ranking second on the team with 13 goals. Flynn has scored in every game, with four multi-goal outings in five tries.
AT SCHAAL AQUATICS CENTER | DAVIS, CALIF.
2024 RECAP
Boasting the nation’s best defense throughout the year, Cal finished as the runner-up in both the NCAA and MPSF Championships, advancing to the NCAA Championship final for the second time in program history. The Bears posted their second straight 19-win season, going 19-7 (.731), good for their highest win percentage since 2018. At the heart of their success was the play of graduated senior goalkeeper Isabel Williams, who set the team’s all-time career saves record on her way to becoming the first Bear in program history to win the prestigious Peter J. Cutino Award, given to the top player in the NCAA.
SATURDAY, Feb. 8
NO. 3 CAL (5-0) VS NO. 17 SAN JOSE STATE (4-5) | 11 AM PT
LIVE STATS
CAL CUP RECAP
Playing at Spieker Aquatics Complex for the first time since 2023, Swadling led her team in scoring and set a new season high in both of the Bears’ games at the Cal Cup. Swadling put up four goals in the win over Fresno State and Elena Flynn and Feline Voordouw both struck twice, as Cal’s 17 goals went down as the most allowed by the Bulldogs since 2021. Swadling added five more goals against Long Beach State the following day, while Snyder had her first career hat trick. Talia Fonseca tallied nine saves in each game.
Cal Looks To Remain Perfect
Bonaguidi and Hassett have carried that momentum into the season, putting away eight goals apiece and joining Swadling and Flynn as the only Bears to score in every game thus far.
HALL OF FAME COACHING STAFF
Cal head coach Coralie Simmons and Petri are among the most decorated figures in the sport. Simmons – one of the great trailblazers of the women’s water polo world who earned two NCAA Player of the Year awards while competing for UCLA, won three NCAA Championships and an Olympic silver medal with Team USA – was one of five members in the 39th induction class of the USA Water Polo Hall of Fame in 2023. Her 136 wins at Cal rank second in program history. Last May, she became the first female head coach in NCAA history to reach the NCAA championship game. Petri – the only four-time female Olympian in Cal history – was named to the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 2023. Joining them on the staff for the fourth straight year is assistant coach Lance Morrison, who played Division I water polo at Pacific.
RUBY IS BACK
The Bears’ talented two-time ACWPC All-American missed the 2024 season to train for the Australia National Team, but hasn’t missed a step in her return to Cal’s lineup. Swadling’s 15 goals and three hat tricks through five games both lead the Bears. With her third goal against the Bulldogs, she became the only current Bear to score 100 goals in a Cal uniform.
GOLD MEDAL BEARS
In November, Julia Bonaguidi and Rosalie Hassett competed for Team USA in the 2024 Pan-American Championships, putting away seven and six goals, respectively, on their way to an 18-5 win over Argentina in the final. They became the first Bears to win gold at the tournament since current Cal associate head coach Heather Petri and Elsie Windes in 2011.
WPOLO2/7/2025 2:54 PM | By: Cal Athletics
BEAR NECESSITIES
