Despite the complete lack of footwear required in her sport, Anne Belden has some major shoes to fill.
With the Bruins’ women’s water polo team losing four of its top six scorers from a year ago, the senior attacker from Newport Beach will look to improve upon the 22 goals she scored during her junior season, as well as take a larger leadership role in and out of the pool.
“We had a lot of girls leaving this past year,” Belden said. “And even though we’re all still a little unsure of our roles, I know that I’m going to have to be one of the players that has to step up.”
Bruin coach Adam Krikorian can’t help but smile when he talks about Belden, who has been onboard for the last three of the team’s four consecutive championships.
“She’s been so good for us that we want her to do many of the same things she’s been doing,” Krikorian said. “However, there’s also a lot of additional things she’s going to have to do for us because of our losses.”
There are not too many things that Belden has yet to accomplish in the pool, having began her water polo career at the age of 8. She played for four years at Newport Harbor High School and with the school’s club water polo affiliation.
Belden also starred in swimming in high school, but it was in water polo where her talent really shone and where she received her highest accolades. As a senior, Belden tallied a remarkable 88 goals, which helped her earn All-CIF first-team honors, Sea View League Player of the Year and the chance to play at UCLA.
Belden’s club efforts also allowed her to play internationally against teams from Australia and New Zealand, an experience that has helped fuel her thoughts of life after college.
“I haven’t really made a decision on whether or not to continue my career after UCLA,” Belden said. “One option is playing abroad, which is something I’ve considered but haven’t committed to yet.”
Belden admits that after devoting the last dozen years of her life to the sport, it would be difficult to hang up the water polo cap at the end of her collegiate career. At any rate, Belden is confident that the indeterminate future will not have an effect on her mindset going into the 2009 Bruin campaign.
“I’m not looking anywhere beyond this upcoming season,” she said. “There are plenty of things I want to accomplish this year, that I don’t need to be focusing on the future.”
The graduation of high scorers like Jillian Kraus, Courtney Mathewson and Brittany Rowe opens a window of opportunity for players like Belden, who plans on taking a much larger role in the team’s performance. She is chasing her fourth straight championship but knows it will not be easy due to the significant amount of turnover on this year’s team, combined with the difficult task of continuing to repeat as champions as other teams give the Bruins their best shots in every game.
“I’m going to stay hungry, and we’ll continue to move forward this season,” Belden said. “Teams are going to want to come after us, just because we’re UCLA and we’ve been so successful.”
Despite the proverbial target on their backs, the Bruins aren’t approaching this season any differently than in the past, at least in regard to their preseason preparation. Belden and Krikorian agree that while their offseason program is not all that different from that of other teams, their mentality and mindset have to be sharpened and focused.
Meanwhile, the Bruins’ unprecedented run of success not only has other schools chasing them, but it also creates a sense of urgency that Belden says is expected.
“Of course there’s going to be pressure, but that’s because of how good we’ve been,” she said. “I think it’s a great thing and it serves as good motivation. It helps me to look forward to my senior season.”
Another individual who is looking forward to Belden’s season is Krikorian, who believes that his senior star is “ready to flourish” as one of his team’s most important leaders.
“She’s gotten better and better as a player in our program,” Krikorian said. “As good as she is as a player, I believe that she can be an even greater leader.”
Both her skills in the pool and her leadership qualities can be attributed to Belden’s remarkable acumen in the water and in the locker room. After playing her previous three years somewhat in the shadow of the program’s past stars, Belden is ready to cement her status as one of the nation’s best.
“I think Anne is one of the smartest players in the entire country,” Krikorian said. “She brings such a tremendous amount of intelligence and intensity to the table, that the rest of our players are really going to be able to feed off of her.”
The confidence prevalent in the always important coach-player relationship is not unilateral, as Belden explains that she is a big fan of what Krikorian brings to the table as both a friend and an instructor.
“I absolutely love playing for (Coach) Adam (Krikorian),” Belden said. “Not only is he a great coach, but he also does an excellent job of keeping things fun, making him a terrific guy to play for.”
Belden will certainly savor every moment in her final season at UCLA, and not just because of her many individual and team accomplishments. With both parents being UCLA alumni and a brother and a sister who went through the Bruin water polo program, she has bled blue and gold her entire life. Belden says that being part of the legacy is always a joy, and she never feels like she has to follow in anybody’s footsteps. Not that that would be anything new.