A weekend of limited travel may have been the perfect remedy for the struggles of the UCLA women’s water polo team.
After grueling road trips to the Bay Area and Hawaii, the No. 4 Bruins (14-5, 2-1 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) stayed close to home last week, winning against No. 13 UC Irvine 8-5 on Thursday before knocking off No. 6 Arizona State 13-6 on Saturday at Spieker Aquatics Center. It was the first home match in exactly one month for UCLA.
One player who appeared to enjoy playing in Southern California was UCLA junior attacker Priscilla Orozco, who led her team with four goals in each of the two games.
In the absence of junior Grace Reynolds, who has not played in the last two games, freshman Emily Greenwood also contributed with a goal against UC Irvine and a career-high three tallies against Arizona State.
As has been the norm this year for the Bruins, sophomore goalkeeper Caitlin Dement played both games in the cage.
With final exams looming, the Bruins have a two-week break before facing their biggest test, when they host No. 2 Stanford in a crucial conference showdown on March 27.
Compiled by Ryan Eshoff, Bruin Sports senior staff.