After an anticlimactic fifth-place finish in 2005, the UCLA
men’s water polo team is poised to battle for the national
title this year. Deemed No. 3 in the nation by the coaches’
poll earlier this summer, the Bruins are behind reigning champions
No. 2 USC as well as No. 1 Cal. However, as with every season, any
of the teams in the top echelon can easily beat any other team on
any given day. The key to the Bruins’ success will lie
largely in their ability to maintain confidence and focus
throughout every single game. “We have all the necessary
components to produce a national championship (this year),”
coach Adam Krikorian said. “Unfortunately, Cal, USC and
Stanford have all the components as well. It’ll be about
which team executes the best at the end of the season. “We
need to keep in mind that every game is crucial. If you play at 90
percent and not 100 percent one game, you can lose to anyone in our
conference.” With the loss of only two seniors to graduation,
the Bruins boast seven returning seniors. Along with captains Will
Didinger, Logan Powell and Michael March, the other four seniors
will be relied upon to bolster team confidence and promote the
components necessary for a national title. “I am ready to
step up into the role of captain,” March said. “I am
excited for my new role as the old guy on the team.” March
sat out last season, undergoing and recovering from back surgery
following an injury sustained while playing for the U.S. national
team. Senior Brad Greiner also took the 2005 season off, to pursue
work in modeling. Both Greiner and March were seasoned defenders
for UCLA, and their contributions were severely missed as the
Bruins faltered defensively throughout last season, largely because
of their lack of depth. “I think if we had a weakness last
year, it was our defense,” Krikorian said. “With both
March and Greiner back, they are really going to help out a lot. It
would have been great to have them last year ““ it would have
made a big difference,” he said. Along with the senior
additions to the 2006 roster and the returning upperclassmen, the
Bruins also have a promising freshman class hoping to vie for time
in the pool. Redshirt freshman goalie Chay Lapin has already seen
starts in front of the net, against Cal Baptist on Sept. 14 and USC
at the NorCal Tournament on Sept. 17, as he battles Didinger for
the starting position. “It has been said that we have the
best goalies in the country and I think it is true,” Greiner
said. “As a defender, I would have any of our goalies back
there and be completely confident in their abilities.” Along
with Lapin, redshirt freshmen Scott Davidson and Tyler Jemmett have
seen sufficient playing time, making their presence known with a
handful of goals. Davidson netted two against Cal Baptist, and
Jemmett had one. “The freshmen are really doing a great
job,” Krikorian said. “Scott, Tyler and Chay will see
some playing time, and those three guys will really help us out a
lot for sure.” After a third-place finish at the NorCal
Tournament on Sept. 16-17, the coaches’ poll appears accurate
for the No. 3 Bruins thus far.
COACHING: Also helping the team is a deeper coaching staff. In
hopes of making the hectic life of running two prestigious water
polo programs slightly easier, Krikorian has added UCLA alumna and
U.S. Olympian Coralie Simmons to his staff. He has also combined
the staffs to coach both men’s and women’s along with
him, rather than having separate assistants for each team. “I
have the best coaching staff in the country, no question about
it,” Krikorian said. “My assistants are knowledgeable
and so enthusiastic.” Krikorian and his new staff only hope
that UCLA can outlast the other top MPSF teams as the season
progresses and ultimately prove the polling inaccurate. If that can
be done, a national title is more than likely.