STANFORD – Sophomore Dora Antal had five goals and two steals but the fourth-seeded Cal women's water polo team lost a 9-8 overtime heartbreaker to No. 3 USC on Sunday in the Third Place Game of the NCAA Championships.

Antal finished the 2015 season with 69 goals, which ties Emily Csikos for the sixth-best single-season scoring mark all-time at Cal.

Antal broke a 5-5 tie by scoring consecutive goals in the second half, giving the Bears (20-9) a 7-5 advantage with 5:20 remaining in the game. But the Trojans scored two in a row to tie it up, the final one coming with 1:07 to play.

USC took an 8-7 lead with a goal on its first possession of the first overtime, but Antal converted a brilliant lob shot with 1:10 left to knot the match once again. The Trojans scored the game-winner with 1:33 to go in the second overtime.

The Bears almost won it in regulation when Emily Loughlin's tip shot off a pass from Tiera Schroeder was barely deflected away by USC goalie Victoria Chamarro just before time expired.

"The most important thing out there was how hard we battled," Cal coach Richard Corso said. "We weren't able to get a couple of breaks at the end of the game. We had opportunities in the fourth quarter to seal it."

Before Antal's back-to-back goals that put Cal in front by two, there had been four lead changes in the game.

"The biggest positive to take away in this game is that we played as a team," Cal goalie Madeline Trabucco said. "That's the biggest thing - just having great team chemistry. 

Sunday's game capped off the careers of the Bears' four seniors – Schroeder, Kelly McKee, Victoria Williams and Michelle Caron. Cal advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA Championships for the second straight year this season and has made the tournament in four of the past six seasons.

Antal now has 144 career goals after two seasons at Cal, good for ninth on the program's all-time list. She needs just eight to move into eighth place.

"She's a great scorer," Corso said. "She's probably one of the top four players in the  world offensively. She's just a great kid, a great student-athlete. We're very proud to have her at the University of California."

Antal and fellow sophomore Roser Tarrago were named to the All-MPSF First Team this season. Cal reached the 20-win mark for the second year in a row, including a victory over then-No. 1 Stanford at the MPSF Tournament.