Winning has always been a tradition for UCLA water polo.
For coach Adam Krikorian, those high standards have never
wavered.
However, coming into this season, Krikorian had an uncertain
outlook on how the reigning 2003 NCAA champion women’s water
polo team would fare.
“I didn’t know what to expect,” Krikorian
said. “There was a certain unknown because of the
inexperience and youth on this team.”
Over the break, that uncertainty was quelled.
After capturing the Rainbow Classic Championship, where UCLA
endured a six-game marathon in two days, the No. 3 Bruins (15-3,
5-1 MPSF) returned home this past weekend and defeated conference
rival Arizona State, 13-5.
“It’s all about finding our rhythm, and I feel we
have that now,” sophomore driver Katherine Belden said.
With the victory over the No. 17 Sun Devils (9-13, 2-7), the
Bruins’ win streak was stretched to 11 games.
Despite a slothful start, where UCLA found itself tied at two at
the end of the first quarter, the Bruins’ defense began to
collapse and force the Sun Devils to frivolously waste time off
their shot clock.
Belden was the beneficiary of the Bruins’ defense and
counterattack, as she tallied a game-high four goals by driving end
to end against the stagnant and weary opposition.
“I feel that our team is one of the more conditioned teams
out there and we knew that (Arizona State) isn’t as
conditioned as us, so we took advantage of that,” Belden
said.
Heading into the half, ASU tried to stay within striking
distance, as it found itself only down 6-3.
But the Bruins pulled ahead in the third quarter, connecting on
four unanswered goals while dousing any type of comeback attempted
by the Sun Devils.
While the Bruins have been able to dominate their lesser
opponents, beating the elite teams has been another story.
UCLA has dropped both of its games to No. 1 USC, and its only
match to No. 2 Stanford, but as the season has carried on the
Bruins find themselves surging together at the right moment.
“We’re getting better as we get more games under our
belt, and I feel as long as our team plays with confidence,
we’ll be ready to compete with anybody,” co-captain
Kristina Kunkel said.
“The last thing we’re thinking about is
‘SC,” Krikorian said.
“The biggest thing is gaining experience and playing
cohesively and confidently as a team, and I think we’re
getting much better in those areas.”
With the Bruins dropping two early decisions to still-undefeated
USC, it is becoming apparent that the Trojans are setting the
standard for this season.
However, with the gap between UCLA and USC closing, Belden feels
that with their confidence they will be able to hang tough with the
Trojans.
“There’s no fear on our team.”