Pepperdine is one of the few teams that has given the UCLA
men’s water polo team a tough time in recent years, which
makes sense as the Waves have been one of the top teams in the
country.
But it will be different Sunday when the two teams face off in
Malibu.
While the Bruins have won ten matches in a row and established
themselves as the No. 1 team in the nation, Pepperdine (9-8, 1-2
MPSF) has struggled this year.
Traditionally one of the top teams in the nation, the No. 11
Waves have struggled on offense, ranking eighth out of nine teams
in the MPSF in goals per game.
“Pepperdine always gives us a tough game,” UCLA
senior center Ted Peck said. “But I think we’re
definitely the better team.”
UCLA has not had an easy time with Pepperdine the past two
years. The two teams faced each other four times, with UCLA winning
just once, an overtime win at home last season.
But this year the Bruins have had an easier time of things. UCLA
has won its only matchup so far against the Waves, a commanding
11-4 win at the So Cal Tournament back on Sept. 18.
Part of the reason for the Waves’ struggles is that they
are playing this season without their best player. Jesse Smith, a
U.S. Olympian this summer in Athens, is redshirting the season for
Pepperdine. On top of that, several of their starters from last
year were lost to graduation.
“Pepperdine’s a young team this year,” UCLA
coach Adam Krikorian said. “But they’re still very
talented.”
In comparison, UCLA also has a player who played at the Olympics
this summer, Brett Ormsby. Ormsby has scored 30 more goals for UCLA
than any other Bruin this season.
While the Waves have struggled, the Bruins (13-2, 2-0 MPSF) are
on their longest winning streak since 1996. They have moved to the
top of the national rankings with wins over No. 2 Stanford, No. 3
USC and No. 4 California.
“Our team has played lately with the confidence that we
had been lacking earlier in the year,” Peck said.
“We’re the strongest and fastest team out there. We can
stack up against anybody one-on-one.”
With the roll UCLA is on, the team’s preseason goal of
going undefeated in MPSF play is within reach. The Bruins only have
six MPSF matches left before the MPSF tournament and already have
victories against the top two teams left on their schedule, USC and
Stanford.
“We have six games left and we’re really trying to
go 6-0 the rest of the way,” coach Adam Krikorian said.