The UCLA men’s water polo team knew that preserving its chance at an NCAA Championship bid would not be easy, but that doesn’t make it any easier to realize that it’s gone.
The Bruins (16-8) were looking for a trip back to nationals for the first time since they won it all in 2004, but they fell two games short.
“Going into the tournament, we knew we would have a tough road,” redshirt junior Scott Davidson said. “The loss at Pepperdine (last weekend) changed a lot of things.” That defeat brought the Bruins down to the fourth seed instead of a possible third seed.
Their 2008 season came to an end Sunday afternoon at Raleigh Runnels Memorial Pool at Pepperdine in Malibu. UCLA lost to No. 2-seeded Stanford 10-7 in the third-place game in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Tournament.
“We did come out to a bit of a slow start,” Davidson said. “It’s hard to come back and know today is the last game.”
By not winning the conference tournament, hopes were dashed to make it to the NCAAs. The tournament winner received an automatic berth which the Bruins needed since they were unlikely to be selected for the at-large berth.
The Cardinal (24-5) jumped out to a 3-0 lead by the end of the first quarter. Redshirt sophomore Jacob Murphy put the Bruins on the board with a goal early in the second quarter. At halftime, Stanford was up 5-2 and scored first in the third period before UCLA used a 3-0 run to cut the lead to one. Both teams traded a couple goals and then Stanford put the game out of hand with two goals in the final two minutes. Redshirt senior Krsto Sbutega scored a hat trick with Murphy adding two goals. Redshirt junior Chay Lapin recorded six saves.
“Our chances to compete at NCAA were gone,” coach Adam Krikorian said. “Stanford desperately needed that game. You could tell right off the bat and that was a big difference. Once we started competing, working hard and going for it, it was a heck of a game after that.”
If playing the No. 2-seed in the last game wasn’t hard enough, UCLA had to do it the day after playing top-ranked USC. The Trojans (27-0) kept their perfect season alive with a convincing 9-5 victory. They used a 6-0 run to start the game and the Bruins could not recover.
Davidson, who scored six goals in the tournament, finally put a ball in the back of the cage midway through the second quarter, and redshirt freshman Cullen Hennessy scored to go into the half 6-2.
USC bumped the lead up to six goals early in the final quarter but it was reduced to four with goals from Sbutega and sophomore Ben Hohl. The Trojans have demolished opponents the entire season and proved to be an unstoppable force in the pool once again.
“We dug ourselves in a deep hole,” Krikorian said. “We’re not the only team they’ve done that too. They have everything: depth, size and speed. We scrapped and clawed and kept competing, and that’s what I’m most proud of.”
In the opening round of the tournament Friday afternoon, UCLA earned what would be its last victory of the season over No. 5-seeded Cal. Davidson and Hohl each had a hat trick and Sbutega pitched in a pair of goals in the 11-8 win.
The Bruins never trailed. Though the Golden Bears managed to tie it on two occasions in the second, the Bruins rallied a 3-0 run to close the half at 8-5.
Defense was key as Lapin had 14 saves and the Bears just three second-half goals. Lapin ended the season with 206 saves.
With the season over, three careers will end as well. Sbutega and redshirt seniors Chris Allen and Russell Simpkins played their final games this weekend. The trio were redshirting their freshman year the last time the Bruins won a national championship in 2004.
“They meant so much to this program,” Krikorian said. “Their love and enthusiasm for the program ““ I couldn’t ask any more from any of them. This program is much better because we had those guys.” Sbutega finished fifth on the list of all-time Bruin goal scorers with 143. Over the weekend, he passed current assistant Adam Wright and Chris Kellerman. Sbutega’s 50 goals this season led the team and is the most in a season since Brett Ormsby’s 70 in 2004.
PERFECT SEASON: USC won the tournament, ending with a 3-2 win over host Pepperdine and a buzzer beater goal by Shea Buckner. USC claimed the automatic berth to the NCAA Championships at Stanford on Dec. 6 and 7.
Loyola Marymount beat UC San Diego and won the Western Water Polo Association Championships to also earn an automatic bid. Navy received the third automatic bid with a win over Princeton.