Amid euphoric celebration and splashing water, Stephania Haralabidis cried. Her salty tears mixed with chlorinated water to make the concoction of a true champion.
Haralabidis buried a half-tank shot with six seconds left to propel USC to an 8-7 nail-biting, national-championship-winning victory over Stanford in the NCAA women’s water polo tournament on Sunday at UCLA’s Spieker Aquatics Center. The Greek national team member contributed to seven of USC’s eight goals, scoring five and assisting two, as USC capped its perfect 26-0 season.
•PHOTOS: USC completes perfect season
“This kind of performance is a performance for the ages,” USC head coach Jovan Vavic said of Haralabidis.