No. 9 Hoosiers look to bring home NCAA title

The No. 9 water polo team will compete in their first NCAA Championship this weekend at the University of California San Diego in La Jolla, Calif. \nThe Hoosiers' first game is at 1:30 p.m. Saturday against No. 1 seed -- and last year's national champion -- Stanford Cardinal. The Hoosiers played the Cardinal earlier this year at the Stanford Invitational, losing 15-3.\n"Now, it is important for us to go out there mentally and physically focused on the task at hand," coach Barry King said in a press release. "Stanford, UCLA and (Loyola Marymount) are three of the best teams in the nation. We will have to play our two best games of the year this weekend."\nIn the other national semifinal game, No. 2 UCLA and No. 3 Loyola Marymount will face off at 3 p.m. If the Hoosiers are victorious, they will play the winner of this game at 3 p.m. Sunday for their first national championship. The consolation game is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Sunday. \n"(The Eastern Championship game) was an unbelievable team performance that culminated a season of hard work and dedication," King said. "Earning this trip to the NCAA Championships was our goal from the beginning."\nA stellar defense is the Hoosiers' main asset heading into the championships. Sophomore goalie Jessica Goldner has been spectacular all year. However, she has played far and above her normal game as of late. In the Eastern Championship semifinals game, Goldner held Princeton scoreless until the last couple minutes of the game. In the championship game, Goldner had 11 saves against Brown.\nOn the offensive side of the ball, IU will again look to the Hoosiers' all-time leading scorer senior Kristin Stanford. Stanford leads the Hoosiers this year with 73 total goals.