49ers Coming Off Second Place Finish at UCSD Tournament Record: 2-2, 0-0 MPSF ? Ranking: 11th CURRENT STATS Season Continues with USC: After finishing second at the UC San Diego Tournament last weekend, The Beach (2-2) will host No. 3-ranked USC (5-1) on Saturday at the campus pool at 12 p.m. Last week, The Beach took care of UC Irvine and Hawaii before losing in the championship game to LMU. This year's team returns four starters, including the top two goal scorers in school history in Stacy Black and Ashley Richardson. Last year's leading scorer, Angelica Garica returns, as does all-time saves leader Amanda Wightman. The 49ers, who produced their first winning season ever in 2001, also may have their top recruiting class, yet, with New Zealander Roberta Stewart, LBSU legacy Drue Wawrzynski and goalkeeper Bri Hawkins. Head Coach: Ricardo Azevedo enters his third season with The Beach with a 36-38 mark. Azevedo also coaches the men's team. Azevedo is also an assistant with the men's National Team. Rank and File: The 49ers are ranked No. 11 in the pre-season Coaches Poll, the same ranking they had to finish off the 2001 campaign. LBSU's highest rankings (season and in school history) came on March 1 when the team was ranked No. 5. The MPSF is considered the toughest water polo conference in the country, with nine of the top-10 teams in the conference. Nice Debut: Freshman Roberta Stewart (Auckland, NZ) made a huge splash in her first tournament for the 49ers. Stewart led the team with nine goals and added six steals and two assists on the weekend. Back in Black: Senior Stacy Black (Los Alamitos, CA) the school-record holder with 145 goals returns for her senior season after redshirting in 2001. Black, the team's captain, was a third team All-American in 2000. Black had one goal last weekend at UCSD. World's Finest Duo: San Diego natives Ashley Richardson and Amanda Wightman each had successful trips to their hometowns over the weekend. Richardson scored seven goals and added a team-best seven steals and four assists, while Wightman produced a 0.71 goals against average while racking up 30 saves. Muy Bien!: Third team All-American and sophomore Angelica Garcia (Cantano, PR) led the team with 58 goals last season, the fourth best, single-season and sixth best career total. Garcia scored in all but five matches. Garcia is currently third on the team with five goals this year. It's Wawr!: Freshman Drue Wawrzynski found the back of the net four times at UCSD. The Los Al native also tied for the team-lead with seven steals. Top Recruits: Utility Roberta Stewart (Auckland, NZ), 2-Meter Drue Wawrzynski (Garden Grove, CA) and goalie Bri Hawkins (San Diego, CA) enter their first year with the program. Stewart is a member of the N2 New Zealand National team while Drue is the third Wawrzynski to play for The Beach following in the footsteps of her father and brother. Goalie Bri Hawkins is an all-CIF pick out of Mt. Carmel HS. All three carry international experience to go along with current Niners Richardson and Garcia. Not a Bad Start: The 49ers began 2001, 7-3, finishing third at the UC San Diego Tournament and fifth at the UC Santa Barbara Tournament. The 7-3 mark was the best start in school history. The hot start also saw the team rank as high as No. 5 in the nation. | 
