It was one of those games you remember. After reaching a deficit
of three goals in the third quarter, the third-ranked UCLA
men’s water polo team fought its way back to send the match
against top-ranked USC into overtime, culminating in a period of
sudden-death.
Sadly for the Bruins, they could not come out on top, though the
battle to the final score of 9-8 elicited nervous jitters and
constant cheering from the overcrowded McDonald’s
Stadium.
After coming out flat in the first quarter, the game seemed to
be over early on for UCLA, as the Trojans outplayed the Bruins in
the first half. USC had a 6-3 lead early in the third quarter, and
up to that point, any time the Bruins put points on the board the
Trojans would put up a few more.
Yet, after a plethora of missed Bruin shots, the UCLA players
finally began to find the net, with back-to-back goals by junior
Justin Johnson and sophomore Krsto Sbutega in the last two minutes
of the third quarter. The goals brought UCLA within one goal of
tying the match, an idea that earlier in the quarter seemed like a
whimsical wish.
“I don’t think we played very well in the first
quarter, and I don’t think they necessarily believed,”
coach Adam Krikorian said. “But I think as the game wore on
they became believers. They did a great job coming back from two-
(and) three-goal deficits. They showed a lot of heart and
character.”
From the fourth quarter on, the teams battled back and forth for
control of the scoreboard, and the Bruins took their first lead of
the game on a breakaway by senior Logan Powell, who scored his
second goal of the game with 2:50 left.
“In a fight, the person who throws the first blow is
usually the person who wins,” Powell said. “They jumped
on us really early on, and we were clawing our way back all the way
from them. It was definitely fun, until the end.”
The Bruins could not hold on to the lead for long, as USC
responded with a goal 41 seconds later to tie up the game, 7-7.
And after four timeouts, as the teams tried desperately to score
in the final two minutes of regulation, the game ended in a tie,
forcing overtime periods.
Both teams scored in the second overtime period, propelling the
match into a three-minute period of sudden death.
Sudden death began with UCLA winning the initial sprint, but
after a missed Bruin shot, USC responded with a 6-on-5 advantage
goal to seal the Bruin defeat.
“Our team played well. I think that in the second half and
in overtime we were on it and we brought it to them,” Powell
said. “I think we may have had the edge a little bit, but we
came out a little flat. Playing against a team like USC, you
can’t have a first half like the one we played and expect to
win. I mean, it still came down to the wire, but I think if we had
come out a little tougher and a little more energy, it could have
been different.”
Despite the loss, the Bruins brought themselves up to the level
of the top team in the nation. Freshman Chay Lapin clocked nine
saves for the Bruins in front of the cage in his first MPSF match
as the starting goalkeeper.
“Chay played excellent,” Krikorian said. “It
was his first real big game. He was confident, comfortable, and he
really did a nice job.”
UCLA is now 1-1 in the MPSF conference with a schedule of tough
away games ahead, but the performance at USC this weekend showed
signs of great potential.
“I am proud of them,” Krikorian said. “That
was the first time this year that I have really, truly been proud
of them.”