Which team has had the best start to the season?
Kevin: While men’s water polo got off to a blistering 18-1 start to the year and earned a No. 1 ranking, I’ve been most impressed with the women’s soccer team. The Bruins had an extremely difficult start to its season, playing four consecutive road games against ranked opponents early on. In those games against Marquette, Notre Dame, Duke and North Carolina, UCLA emerged with three wins and just one loss. That one loss, which came against No. 2 North Carolina, is No. 3 UCLA’s only loss on the season thus far. The Bruins have been dominant on defense, holding opponents to just five goals and a .043 shot percentage on the season. They’ve been no slouch on offense either, scoring 26 goals of their own, led by freshman forward Darian Jenkins, who has eight goals this year.
Sari: Men’s water polo has definitely had the most impressive start. Before last weekend’s loss to USC in the final game of the SoCal Invitational, the team had been 18-0 this season, tied for the fifth-longest win streak in UCLA history. Additionally, at the NorCal Invitational, the Bruins beat the Trojans and ended a USC win streak that originated in 2011. Last weekend’s loss occurred in double overtime – a slipup that can be blamed on the nature of the dragging, four-game tournament. And because a large chunk of goals in the game were scored by USC on power plays later in the game, UCLA men’s water polo has a concrete idea of at least one area of improvement before its next game. Other than that, the team has been a force to be reckoned with.
Which team has been the biggest surprise?
Kevin: I’ve been most surprised by the men’s water polo team. After its last-minute loss to USC in the national title game last season and the departure of several key players, I was expecting a bit of a down year, but UCLA is in the midst of one of its best seasons in recent memory. After USC held the men’s water polo crown for the past few years, winning the past five national championships, UCLA finally earned a win over its crosstown rivals earlier this year, defeating the Trojans 9-8 on Sept. 22 in the finals of the NorCal Invitational. The Bruins finally lost their first game of the year, falling to the Trojans in double overtime in the finals of the SoCal Invitational. Playing for over a month before registering its first loss, UCLA men’s water polo has proven that it is one of the nation’s top teams and one of the best on campus right now.
Sari: I’d say football has been the biggest surprise. The team proved itself last year, of course, garnering wins against all but Oregon State, Cal, Stanford and Baylor. The 26-49 loss to Baylor in the Holiday Bowl left some wounds, of course, but after a 38-28 victory over USC and other successes, fans understood there was to be a resurgence of UCLA football. What’s surprising, however, is the magnitude of UCLA’s wins this year. Last year, UCLA played a 36-30 game against Nebraska, compared to this year’s 41-21 win. Last year’s anticlimactic loss to Cal in the Bay Area was dubbed a slipup, a fluke – but this year’s 37-10 victory sends a much more serious tone about the level of playing in this year’s team. Thus, the surprise is in how dramatically bolstered UCLA’s team is this year.
Which team has been the biggest letdown?
Kevin: Men’s soccer has been the biggest letdown for me, not because they’ve played poorly – the Bruins are the No. 6 team in the nation – but because they could play better than they have. UCLA has played some great games, such as knocking off the defending national champion and then-No. 1 Indiana, but haven’t played that well consistently. UCLA followed the win over Indiana with a 3-0 loss to unranked Cal Poly. With talent throughout the lineup, the Bruins could easily be undefeated to this point, but they have yet to play up to their full talent level.
Sari: Times have been tough for women’s volleyball. After starting off the season 9-1, the team lost five straight conference games. The team’s resorted to a “back-to-basics” approach that coach Mike Sealy felt made for successful practices, but it’ll take a big effort on the part of the team to bounce back from a 10-6 record for the season so far. The most recent victory against Oregon State is a glimmer of hope for the team, but we’ll just have to see where women’s volleyball goes from here.