BERKELEY – The No. 4 California women's water polo team continued its winning ways in Saturday's return to Spieker Aquatics Complex, defeating No. 9 UC Davis 18-10 for its eighth straight victory to begin the year.

Despite a slow start that saw the Aggies (8-6) take an early 4-2 lead, the Golden Bears (8-0) turned it on towards the end of the opening period, repeatedly outpacing the visitors in transition and punishing the defense on the inside. Seven of Cal's first nine goals came following a Davis exclusion, a trend that kicked off a scorching 8-0 run that lasted nearly a quarter and a half.

Cal's freshmen led the way with season highs on offense, as Eszter Varro scored five times and Miriam Bogachenko put away four goals. It was the second hat trick of the year for both players and the second consecutive for Varro. Senior Ruby Swadling also poured in four goals, giving her a team-high 22 on the season.

Despite a pair of early 6-on-5 goals from Voorvelt and Varro, the Bears found themselves trailing by two goals nearing the end of one. A stop and quick counter down the left wing resulted in a Holly Dunn assist to Julianne Snyder, making it 4-3 in favor of Davis. From there, it was all Cal.

The Bears got out to a fast start to the second, getting two quick strikes from Swadling and Bogachenko in less than a minute to take a 5-4 lead. Bogachenko and Voorvelt scored on two more power plays and Swadling added a penalty to close the half with Cal ahead 8-4.

The Bears extended their run to 8-0 in the third quarter, working the ball around beautifully to set up a pair of goals by Varro. Two more Swadling goals followed to send Cal into the final frame up 13-5.

Elena Flynn put away her first two goals of the day in the fourth – clinching her team-best seventh multi-goal effort in eight tries. Varro scored two more times to bring her goal total to five, and Bogachenko added her fourth in the closing minutes. Goalkeeper Talia Fonseca finished with seven saves.

Cal returns to the road for its next seven outings. The Bears will play four games in Irvine at next weekend's Barbara Kalbus Invitational. They will kick off the tournament against No. 16 UC Santa Barbara on Friday at 12:40 p.m. PT.

Cal 3 5 5 5 – 18
UCD 4 0 1 6 – 11
Cal Goals: Varro 5, Swadling 4, Bogachenko 4, Flynn 2, Voorvelt 2, Snyder
UCD Goals: Miller 3, Sumner, Hungerford, Nocetti, Smith, Giusti, Henry, Massman, Vehling
Cal Saves: Talia Fonseca 7
UCD Saves: Eva Stein 4