Friday, April 25
Irvine, Calif.
2:30 p.m.
California State University at Northridge
vs
NO. 2 SEED Long Beach State
Photo by: Chuck Marvel
CSUN Water Polo Opens Big West Championship Against LBSU
4/23/2025 4:31:00 PM | Women's Water Polo
NORTHRIDGE, Calif.---CSUN Water Polo opens the 2025 Big West Championship on Friday afternoon in Irvine as the seventh-seeded Matadors faces second-seeded Long Beach State at 2:30 p.m. inside Anteater Aquatics Complex. Live stats will be available for the match.
FOR STARTERS
CSUN (16-12, 1-6 Big West) is making its 15th appearance in the Big West Championship this season and 20th overall conference tournament appearance in team history. The winner of CSUN and Long Beach State advances to the semifinal round on Saturday to face either No. 3 seed UC Irvine or No. 6 seed UC Santa Barbara. Sunday will feature the tournament final, which will crown the Big West champion and the automatic qualifier for the NCAA Tournament.
RANKED IN THE TOP 25
The Matadors enter the postseason ranked tied for No. 24 in this week's national top 25 poll. CSUN has remained in the top 25 for 12 of 14 weeks this season and peaked as high as No. 16 on the campaign. CSUN's first-round opponent Long Beach State is ranked No. 6 in this week's poll. In total, seven of the eight Big West teams are ranked in the poll with three ranked in the top 10 (No. 4 Hawai'i and No. 7 UC Irvine).
ANOTHER WINNING SEASON SECURED
CSUN has already secured its third consecutive winning season in 2025 after the team went 16-12 in the regular season. Overall, CSUN has registered winning seasons in four of the last five seasons of competition, dating back to the shortened 2020 season. Head coach Matt Warshaw, who is in his eighth season, has led CSUN to 117 wins in his tenure with the team as he became the second-winning coach in the history of the program during the course of this season.
TELEK BREAKS HER OWN RECORD
CSUN's senior center Dorottya Telek added yet another accolade in her brilliant collegiate career. Already the all-time leader in career goals at CSUN, Telek surpassed her own single-season goal record on April 12 at UC Santa Barbara when she scored six times. Her six tally performance gave her 104 total goals on the year, surpassing the 101 she scored in the 2023 season. The Hungarian native has made record breaking a habit in her CSUN career. In her four years with CSUN, Telek has scored 376 career goals, by far the most goals ever scored by a Matador water polo player. She also has the most goals scored in a game with nine, which she established last season and matched earlier this season.
ALL-TIME ASSIST LEADER
A senior from Budapest, Hungary, Anna Pal has made her mark in CSUN record book this season, becoming the Matadors' all-time career assist leader. Pal broke Lindsy Duncan's all-time assist mark on March 7, eventually reaching 207 by the end of the regular season. Her 65 assists this season are also a new career best while it ranks as the third-most in a season in school history. On the scoring end, Pal has established herself as one of the top players in school history as well. With her 56 goals this season, Pal has scored 197 times in her career, good enough for sixth most in school history. Should Pal score three more times this season, Pal would become the first 200-goal and 200-assist player in Matador history.
MATADOR LEADERS
Dorottya Telek enters play this week leading the Big West in goals (104) and points (149). Other top goal scorers on the team include Anna Pal at 56 goals, which ranks 10th in the Big West, senior Helena Sandhagen at 43 goals and freshman Sofia Martinez at 34 goals. Pal also tops the conference with her 65 assists and 51 steals. Telek is a close second in the assist and steal departments on the team at 45 and 41, respectively, In saves, sophomore Erika Staine is up to seventh place in the Big West with her 112 on the campaign.
SCOUTING LONG BEACH STATE
The sixth-ranked Beach are 15-10 overall with a 6-1 Big West record. Long Beach State clinched the No. 2 seed in the Big West Championship with a 15-12 victory over UC Irvine in the regular season finale last Thursday. The team's 10 losses this season have come against top-10 ranked teams. Elisa Portillo leads the Beach with 96 points to go with 60 goals and 36 assists while Martina Cardona has a team-high 62 goals with 22 assists for 84 points. In goal, Chelsea Oliver has 155 saves with a 11.91 goals-against-average.
Series History: Long Beach State holds a 30-9 edge over CSUN in the all-time series as the Beach prevailed in the regular season matchup on March 22 by a 16-2 score. The Matadors look to snap a nine-game skid in the series and pick up their first win over the Beach since an 8-7 sudden victory win in the 2018 season.
#GoMatadors
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FOR STARTERS
CSUN (16-12, 1-6 Big West) is making its 15th appearance in the Big West Championship this season and 20th overall conference tournament appearance in team history. The winner of CSUN and Long Beach State advances to the semifinal round on Saturday to face either No. 3 seed UC Irvine or No. 6 seed UC Santa Barbara. Sunday will feature the tournament final, which will crown the Big West champion and the automatic qualifier for the NCAA Tournament.
RANKED IN THE TOP 25
The Matadors enter the postseason ranked tied for No. 24 in this week's national top 25 poll. CSUN has remained in the top 25 for 12 of 14 weeks this season and peaked as high as No. 16 on the campaign. CSUN's first-round opponent Long Beach State is ranked No. 6 in this week's poll. In total, seven of the eight Big West teams are ranked in the poll with three ranked in the top 10 (No. 4 Hawai'i and No. 7 UC Irvine).
ANOTHER WINNING SEASON SECURED
CSUN has already secured its third consecutive winning season in 2025 after the team went 16-12 in the regular season. Overall, CSUN has registered winning seasons in four of the last five seasons of competition, dating back to the shortened 2020 season. Head coach Matt Warshaw, who is in his eighth season, has led CSUN to 117 wins in his tenure with the team as he became the second-winning coach in the history of the program during the course of this season.
TELEK BREAKS HER OWN RECORD
CSUN's senior center Dorottya Telek added yet another accolade in her brilliant collegiate career. Already the all-time leader in career goals at CSUN, Telek surpassed her own single-season goal record on April 12 at UC Santa Barbara when she scored six times. Her six tally performance gave her 104 total goals on the year, surpassing the 101 she scored in the 2023 season. The Hungarian native has made record breaking a habit in her CSUN career. In her four years with CSUN, Telek has scored 376 career goals, by far the most goals ever scored by a Matador water polo player. She also has the most goals scored in a game with nine, which she established last season and matched earlier this season.
ALL-TIME ASSIST LEADER
A senior from Budapest, Hungary, Anna Pal has made her mark in CSUN record book this season, becoming the Matadors' all-time career assist leader. Pal broke Lindsy Duncan's all-time assist mark on March 7, eventually reaching 207 by the end of the regular season. Her 65 assists this season are also a new career best while it ranks as the third-most in a season in school history. On the scoring end, Pal has established herself as one of the top players in school history as well. With her 56 goals this season, Pal has scored 197 times in her career, good enough for sixth most in school history. Should Pal score three more times this season, Pal would become the first 200-goal and 200-assist player in Matador history.
MATADOR LEADERS
Dorottya Telek enters play this week leading the Big West in goals (104) and points (149). Other top goal scorers on the team include Anna Pal at 56 goals, which ranks 10th in the Big West, senior Helena Sandhagen at 43 goals and freshman Sofia Martinez at 34 goals. Pal also tops the conference with her 65 assists and 51 steals. Telek is a close second in the assist and steal departments on the team at 45 and 41, respectively, In saves, sophomore Erika Staine is up to seventh place in the Big West with her 112 on the campaign.
SCOUTING LONG BEACH STATE
The sixth-ranked Beach are 15-10 overall with a 6-1 Big West record. Long Beach State clinched the No. 2 seed in the Big West Championship with a 15-12 victory over UC Irvine in the regular season finale last Thursday. The team's 10 losses this season have come against top-10 ranked teams. Elisa Portillo leads the Beach with 96 points to go with 60 goals and 36 assists while Martina Cardona has a team-high 62 goals with 22 assists for 84 points. In goal, Chelsea Oliver has 155 saves with a 11.91 goals-against-average.
Series History: Long Beach State holds a 30-9 edge over CSUN in the all-time series as the Beach prevailed in the regular season matchup on March 22 by a 16-2 score. The Matadors look to snap a nine-game skid in the series and pick up their first win over the Beach since an 8-7 sudden victory win in the 2018 season.
#GoMatadors
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Players Mentioned
Utility
/ Women's Water Polo
Attacker
/ Women's Water Polo
Goalkeeper
/ Women's Water Polo
Center
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