It’s been a storybook ending to the perfect season for
senior Natalie Golda. Chosen as the Player of the Year by the
American Water Polo Coaches Association, Golda led the UCLA
women’s water polo team to an undefeated season (33-0) and an
NCAA title, the third of her career in Westwood. Now she can add
another accolade to her phenomenal collegiate career. This past
Saturday at the Olympic Club in San Francisco, the All-American was
given water polo’s most coveted award ““ the Peter J.
Cutino Award (named after the winningest coach in water polo
history) ““ water polo’s equivalent of the Heisman
Trophy. “I never thought something like this would happen to
me,” said Golda, who was joined by fellow Bruin Thalia Munro
and USC’s Brittany Hayes as candidates for the award.
“I’m still in a state of shock and awe.”
“To be honored in this nature with the biggest award water
polo has to offer is pretty unbelievable. Pete Cutino has given a
lot to water polo and women’s water polo and I wouldn’t
be here if it weren’t for him.” Golda finished the 2005
season with 47 goals, 26 assists and 21 steals and etched her name
in UCLA women’s water polo history as the third all-time
scoring leader with 158 goals. While winning the award officially
marks the end of her UCLA career, Golda, who was a member of the
2004 bronze medal Olympic women’s water polo team, has
already moved on from UCLA and is currently training to qualify for
the women’s U.S. National Team. “It’s my time to
go, it’s been an awesome run, and to end it like this is even
sweeter,” Golda said. “I can’t
complain.”
MEN’S AWARD: For the fourth consecutive year,
Stanford’s Tony Azevedo won the Peter J. Cutino Award. While
Azevedo is widely known around the nation as one of the best water
polo players in the world, UCLA’s Brett Ormsby, a senior, was
expected to give Azevedo a run for the award this year. Ormsby not
only led UCLA in scoring this season with a team-high 70 goals, but
he also helped the Bruins win their first national title in four
years, defeating Stanford in the NCAA championship game in Palo
Alto. “To tell you the truth I’m not
disappointed,” Ormsby said. “I’m happy with my
career at UCLA, especially with the way it ended, winning the
national title. That’s the important thing, and that means
the most to me.” Yet, UCLA coach Adam Krikorian, who was also
in attendance at the Olympic Club, couldn’t help but feel
disappointed at what transpired. “I felt Brett deserved to
win the award, and I’m not taking anything away from Tony;
he’s a great player,” Krikorian said. “But what
separates the best players from the great is their ability to lead
a team to a championship and to make their teammates better.”
Ormsby is currently undergoing rehabilitation on his right shoulder
after having surgery on it early on this year. He will also undergo
surgery on other nagging injuries this summer, which include his
left shoulder. Though Ormsby is expected to return to full strength
next January and train with the men’s U.S. National Team, he
is feeling the withdrawals of not competing. “It’s been
really tough; I’ve been lucky until now, without
injuries,” he said. “Sometimes you take for granted
being on the pool deck and practicing twice a day. I miss it a lot.
It’s all I think about, and I can’t wait to get
back.”