The UCLA men’s water polo team wrapped up a series of six
straight road games this weekend, earning conference victories over
Pepperdine and UC Santa Barbara.
The third-ranked Bruins routed the ninth-ranked Waves, 18-5, in
Malibu on Saturday, then edged out the sixth-ranked Gauchos, 7-6,
in overtime on Sunday in Santa Barbara.
The wins improve the Bruins’ record to 13-5 overall for
the season, and 4-2 in Mountain Pacific Sports Federation
conference matches.
While the result was the same for both games, the tones of the
two games were decidedly different. On Saturday, the Bruins jumped
out to an early lead and put the game out of the Waves’ reach
early. Coach Adam Krikorian credited his team’s intensity and
focus in part to UCLA’s 8-7 loss against second-ranked
California the weekend before.
“Mentally, the guys were ready to go,” Krikorian
said. “They were pretty excited to play. Especially coming
off of the disappointing last weekend, they were ready for the
game. They played with a lot of energy early.”
That energy was obvious from outset, as the Bruins scored five
first-quarter goals before Pepperdine was even able to get on the
scoreboard. By halftime, they had expanded the lead to 12-4.
“The biggest thing was we shot the ball well,”
Krikorian said. “Our shots were falling early, and we had a
little bit of a domino effect from there.”
The Bruins didn’t let up in the second half, allowing the
Waves only one goal after the intermission while tallying six more
of their own. Senior Logan Powell led the Bruins’ scoring
attack, tying his career high with five goals. Junior Matt Jacobs
and freshman Scott Davidson each scored three goals, and seven
other Bruin players contributed one goal apiece.
On Sunday, however, the Bruins found themselves with a more
difficult opponent in Santa Barbara. Playing in front of a vocal
home crowd at UCSB’s Campus Pool, the Bruins were unable to
execute on several early scoring opportunities. While the Bruins
controlled the tempo throughout the game and never trailed, they
were unable to build a substantial lead.
“I thought we played pretty well early on and we just
couldn’t execute, and that’s why the game was as close
as it was,” Krikorian said. “The difference between
(the Pepperdine and UC Santa Barbara games) was that (against
Pepperdine) we were able to execute and have our shots fall early
on. We had a real hard time executing today. Give (Santa Barbara)
credit; they played with a lot of energy, and we couldn’t
really match that at times.”
In overtime, however, the Bruins were finally able to move past
the Gauchos. With the game tied at six, true freshman and Santa
Barbara native Kevin Kuga scored the game-winner.
“That’s a big goal for a true freshman,” said
Krikorian. “Especially for him, coming back and playing in
his hometown. We needed him to make a big shot for us, and he
did.”
LOOKING AHEAD: The Bruins conclude their
conference schedule with two home games this weekend, on Friday
against Long Beach State and on Sunday against UC Irvine. Both
games will be at Sunset Canyon Recreation Center.
“I’m just glad we’re not on the road
anymore,” said Krikorian. “This year we’ve had
the fewest number of home games that we’ve ever had, and
we’re glad to be done with that.”