Saturday, December 6
Stanford, Calif.
4:00 PM (PT)
UCLA
26-2
9
at
7
Stanford
18-8
1
2
3
4
OT
OT
SD
SD
SD
SD
SD
F
Stanford (M)
1
2
4
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
7
UCLA (M)
2
2
2
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
9
Redshirt sophomore Nate Tauscher tallied a career-high 16 saves in the win at No. 3 Stanford.
Photo by: Ross Turteltaub
UCLA Advances to NCAA Championship Game, Defeats Stanford, 9-7
December 06, 2025 | Men's Water Polo
STANFORD, Calif. -- No. 2 UCLA (26-2) rallied for its fourth win over No. 3 Stanford (18-8) this season, defeating the Cardinal, 9-7, on Saturday evening at Avery Aquatic Center. The win propels the Bruins into the NCAA Championship game and improves the all-time series record to 88-92 against the Cardinal.
UCLA had six different players score in the contest, paced by a team-high two goals for redshirt junior Frederico Jucá Carsalade and sophomore Ryder Dodd. Jucá Carsalade led all scorers with five points (two goals and a game-high three assists). Redshirt junior Ben Larsen was the only other Bruin to score multiple goals with two big slam dunks on Bruin power plays.
Redshirt sophomore Nate Tauscher got the starting nod and went the distance, tallying a career-best 16 saves to go with two steals. Tauscher and the Bruin defense held the Cardinal to a season-low seven goals (just the second time this season Stanford had been held to single-digit scoring).
UCLA held a slim 2-1 lead at the end of the first period. The two teams battled to a 2-2 draw in the second period as UCLA clung to a 4-3 lead at the break. Stanford outscored the Bruins, 4-2, in the third period to take a 7-6 lead into the final period. The Bruins scored the first goal of the third to lead 5-3. But the Cardinal scored three straight goals to claim their first lead of the game at 6-5 with 4:52 left in the third. Each team scored a goal in the final 4:52 of the third quarter.
The Bruins' defense dominated the fourth, pitching a shutout with Tauscher picking up three stops in the final stanza and the team forcing six turnovers with six different Bruins registering a steal. Ryder Dodd scored the equalizer at the 4:59 mark to tie the game at 7-7. Then Larsen provided the game-winning heroics with his second slam dunk on a Bruin power play with 1:50 to go. Jucá Carsalade added the exclamation point at the buzzer after the Bruins got a big defensive stop to seal the deal on a 7-on-6 play for the Cardinal.
Up Next: The Bruins will face top-seeded USC (24-3) on Sunday, Dec. 7 at 3:00 p.m. PT on ESPNU in the NCAA title match.
No. 2 UCLA at No. 3 Stanford (NCAA Championship - Semifinals - Game 28)
| SCOREBOARD | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | FINAL |
| No. 2 UCLA | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 9 |
| No. 3 Stanford | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 7 |
6x5 - UCLA - 3/8 - STAN - 2/10
Penalties - UCLA - 1/1 - STAN - 0/0
STAN Goals: Ryan Ohl 2, Ben Forer 2, Guido Leonardi 1, Gianpiero Di Martire 1, CJ Indart 1
STAN Saves: West Temkin 10
UCLA Goals: Frederico Jucá Carsalade 2, Ben Larsen 2, Ryder Dodd 2, Wade Sherlock 1, Peter Castillo 1, Ben Liechty 1
UCLA Saves: Nate Tauscher 16
Team Stats
STA
UCL
Shots
28
26
Goals
7
9
Assists
4
8
Points
11
17
Exclusions
8
9
Steals
7
11
Sprints
3
1
1
Ryder Dodd
06:51
Gianpiero Di Martire
06:26
Ben Larsen
05:09
2
Cj Indart
06:18
Wade Sherlock
03:14
Ben Liechty
02:16
Ben Forer
01:33
3
Frederico Juca Carsalade
07:15
Ben Forer
06:46
Ryan Ohl*
06:01
Guido Leonardi
04:52
Peter Castillo
02:35
Ryan Ohl*
01:04
4
Ryder Dodd
04:59
Ben Larsen
01:50
Frederico Juca Carsalade
00:01
Game Leaders
Shots
8
Goals
2
Assists
0
Points
2
Shots
4
Goals
2
Assists
3
Points
5
Shots
4
Goals
1
Assists
2
Points
3
Shots
2
Goals
2
Assists
0
Points
2
Players Mentioned
UTL
/ Men's Water Polo
ATK
/ Men's Water Polo
UTL
/ Men's Water Polo
UTL
/ Men's Water Polo
ATK
/ Men's Water Polo
GK
/ Men's Water PoloCinematic Recap - UCLA M. Water Polo Wins NCAA Championship (Dec. 7, 2025)
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