UCLA men’s water polo’s work was cut out for it as the Bruins played the role of both host and guest last weekend. No. 1 UCLA had its first opportunity this season to compete at home in the UCLA Invitational, however that would be short lived as the Bruins had to make the 88-mile trek to Redlands for the Inland Empire Classic the following day.
UCLA Invitational
UCLA competed in two exhibition games and one game against No. 9 UC San Diego, which contributed to the Bruins’ overall record. In similar fashion to last year’s NCAA semifinal in which the Bruins defeated the Tritons 15-6, they went on to beat the Tritons 18-6 on Saturday.
“These games are designed for us to really work on the things that we need to concentrate on, which is how we play and how we interact. It gave us one last run for everything and for the most part it was pretty good,” said coach Adam Wright.
Junior center Gordon Marshall led the scoring for the Bruins, contributing a career high of five goals on five shot attempts. Marshall was able to complete a hat trick in the first quarter giving UCLA a six-point gap between UCSD going into the second quarter.
“We had guys all over the pool working hard,” Marshall said. “The opportunity for us to convert come from a lot of hard work from those guys drawing a lot of attention from themselves. Therefore they are opening up a lot of the other guys to finish with a lot less pressure on them.”
The Bruins were able to seal their victory with two goals in the fourth quarter by junior center Patrick Woepse and freshman attacker Spencer Farrar. Farrar was able to covert on the 6-on-5 power play in the fourth quarter and give UCLA its third overall win to the overall record.
In the cage, junior goalkeeper Garrett Danner had two saves with a pair of assists. Danner kept opponents to single-digit scoring, allowing five goals. Freshman goalkeeper Alex Wolf would hold the Tritons to one goal and tack on three saves. Sophomore goalkeeper Aleksandar Ruzic made his debut for the Bruins, playing the remaining five minutes of the fourth quarter against UCSD.
“At the end of the day we have to be more consistent,” Wright said. “Whether we are winning or losing we just gotta keep playing the same way which I think is a big thing.”
In the two exhibition games against Long Beach State and UC Santa Barbara, UCLA went undefeated, capping off a successful day in Westwood. However, the Gauchos would prove to be a challenge for the Bruins in a back-and-forth battle separated by the slimmest of margins. UCLA was able to hold onto the one goal lead in the exhibition matchup and defeat UCSB 11-10.
Inland Empire Classic
Regardless of the immediate travel from UCLA to the University of Redlands, the Bruins were able capitalize with two additional victories at the Inland Empire Classic.
UCLA emerged victorious with an 18-3 win over Redlands and a 16-4 win against No. 18 Whittier. Sophomore attacker Max Irving had a career high of four goals in his outing against Redlands, while Farrar had a career-high of four goals as well against Whittier.
“The team really brought it,” Irving said. “The centers were doing a really great job at playing team defense, and it just really opened things up on the offensive end for me.”
The starters for the Bruins got a rest as the reserves started the two games against the Bulldogs and the Poets.
“We have a lot of new pieces that we are going to have to count on,” Wright said. “It’s really for looking at different groups and also for some players to gain more experience.”
Sophomore goalkeeper Elliot Ordway made his debut against Redlands, making fours saves and one steal in his first outing.
“Our team has great depth and everybody can contribute,” Irving said. “Guys who are getting the opportunity to play can see that all the hard work is paying off.”
This past weekend demonstrated UCLA’s ability to disperse the scoring among multiple players on the roster. As the youth on the team continues to be exposed to conference play, the multiple rotations for UCLA continue grow in depth and strength.
“I feel like this team is in a really good spot,” Irving added. “Every opportunity in these games is just an opportunity for us to get better.”
The scoring was distributed among 11 players in the game against Redlands, as well as UCSD, and demonstrated UCLA’s offensive dominance among the roster.
“Each player on our team is extremely important,” Farrar said. “All the way down to the last player on our roster, no one player is more important than another.”
Career-high scoring from Marshall, Irving and Farrar validated the hype that follows the reigning NCAA champions. Given that it is so early in the season, the promise that UCLA has shown throughout its first few tournaments is meeting expectations.
“We know that through the season our goal is to be the best, but we also know every week you have to be the best,” Wright said. “That’s the way men’s water polo works.”
UCLA is now 5-0 overall and will head to the Kap7 NorCal Invitational next weekend on Sept. 19.