In what proved to be a perfect weekend for UCLA Athletics – with collective wins from women’s soccer, women’s volleyball and men’s soccer – men’s water polo capped off the quadruple sweep with a championship victory at the Kap7 NorCal Classic hosted by Pacific.
The No. 2 Bruins opened competition with a commanding 24-0 win over the Pomona-Pitzer Sagehens on Saturday. The victory was UCLA’s first shutout since September 2012 against Fordham and proved to be just the beginning of a strong tournament performance from sophomore goalkeeper Garrett Danner.
The quarterfinals saw the Bruins defeat No. 6 Pacific 15-6, making the team, at that point, 4-0 this year against ranked programs. The victory set UCLA up for a rivalry matchup against No. 3 USC on Sunday in the semifinals.
The game was tied 7-7 heading into the fourth quarter before UCLA’s defense held USC scoreless for the remainder of the match, allowing the Bruins to go ahead 9-7. Danner was only one save away from his career high with 14 total on the game.
The championship match came down to UCLA and No. 1 Stanford. Once again the game was tied 7-7 at the start of the fourth quarter and the Bruin defense provided the spark needed to seal the victory. Danner tied his career high with 15 saves and UCLA went on to win 9-7.
The Bruins are now 12-0 on the year, marking this the third time in three years the team has opened the season undefeated.
Compiled by Claire Fahy, Bruin Sports senior staff.