Gauchos no match for quick transition offense

The UCLA women’s water polo team ended a tough week on a high note with a 21-8 victory over UCSB Sunday at Sunset Canyon Recreation Center. Senior Kelly Rulon scored her 200th career goal, and her sister, sophomore Katie Rulon, scored five goals, tying a single-game record.

“It’s a tribute to Kelly; she’s a phenomenal player and one of the greatest to play college water polo,” coach Adam Krikorian said. “And it is fitting for Katie to share the record for most goals scored with her sister and Melissa Mordell. I’m happy for her.”

The win moved the No. 2-ranked Bruins to 15-1, but they were hardly distracted in celebration.

“We need to do a better job defensively, all around, every single person. We just didn’t put in the effort today,” Krikorian said.

UCLA cruised to a 19-3 lead after three quarters. The Gauchos had no answers for the Bruins’ potent transition offense; senior Molly Cahill scored four times and junior Brittany Rowe added three. The Bruin defense also held strong in several six-on-five situations. But in the fourth quarter the grueling week of training and travel showed, as UCSB scored five times.

“We were definitely tired. We had a rough week of practice, traveling is always tiring, and it was hot. But that’s no excuse. The mistakes we made were lackadaisical, it wasn’t physical preparation that hurt us,” Kelly Rulon said.

Krikorian went to the bench in the end, worrying about the fatigue of his starters. It was during that four-minute stretch of the final quarter that UCSB penetrated the UCLA defense.

“I was a little disappointed with how they played in the first four minutes of the fourth quarter, that’s their chance to get in and show what they can do. I know they can play much better,” he said.

The game Sunday was UCLA’s second of the weekend, having won Saturday at No. 10 Arizona State 15-9. The game was closely contested and sealed only by a third quarter in which the Bruins outscored the Sun Devils 6-0.

“We certainly didn’t play too hot … we didn’t do a good job defensively,” Krikorian said. “The third quarter really was the difference in the game.”

A key emphasis for the Bruins after the weekend is their set offense. Most of their goals came on the counter-attack; they sped past the retreating Gaucho defense to score easy goals on the break. The half-court offense was less potent.

“We really need to focus on our half-court offense, our counter-attack is so strong so that it is what we rely on. But if we can’t score a counter-attack goal we have a hard time setting up our half-court and scoring through that,” Kelly Rulon said. “Overall we need to be more consistent.”

The Bruins have four more games to prepare before a stretch against No. 3 USC and No. 1 Stanford. Next up is Long Beach State on Thursday at home. As the season continues and the postseason approaches, the team is concerned not with the individual accomplishments, but improving as a unit.

“We have a lot to work on as a team. I’m happy as long we play well together.” Katie Rulon said.

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