Graphic: Bruins at the 2015 Summer World University Games

Nearly 50 UCLA student-athletes and coaches made the trip from Westwood to Gwangju, South Korea, for this summer’s World University Games. Over the next week, Bruins representing three countries across seven sports will compete for gold.      

Men’s water polo aims to prove itself in World University Games

Rare opportunities are the outgrowth of self-generated success. Entrepreneurs and businesspeople know that. So does UCLA men’s water polo. The 2014 national championship trophy has been sitting in the J.D. Morgan Center long enough to gather dust, and the banner at Spieker Aquatics Center has faded slightly from the sun – reminders of the December […]

‘Great Eight’ leave men’s water polo with NCAA title, legacy of leadership

The clock was ticking. With less than a minute to play in the 2014 men’s water polo national championship game, the careers of eight graduating Bruins hung in the balance. The “Great Eight” – as coach Adam Wright preferred to call them – had amassed a stunning 80-14 record over the three previous years, reaching […]

Men’s water polo breaks losing streak, defeats six-time champion USC

As the Bruin crowd erupted into frenzied cheering at Canyonview Aquatic Center, the entire UCLA bench made the customary mad dash to the pool. Within seconds, the players, coaching staff and a few elusive fans were in the water, celebrating the program’s ninth NCAA title and leaving a decade-long championship drought behind them. To get […]

Men’s water polo brings home UCLA’s 112th NCAA championship

The scoreline stood at eight goals apiece as the clock wound down on the NCAA championship between UCLA men’s water polo and USC Sunday night. The tide had turned after the Bruins opened the final period comfortably leading 7-4, now finding themselves in a scenario with which UCLA was all too familiar. Just two years […]

UCLA advances to NCAA final against USC with 15-6 win over UCSD

Cristiano Mirarchi is no stranger to the pressure of the postseason, having served as a go-to scorer for UCLA men’s water polo in previous Mountain Pacific Sports Federation and NCAA tournaments. After a rocky start to Saturday’s NCAA semifinal, it was the senior utility who anchored the Bruins, contributing three goals to UCLA’s 15-6 win […]

UCLA men’s water polo aims to break dry spell in NCAA championships

The last time UCLA men’s water polo team went to San Diego, it was untested, with a number of players who had never played a game of collegiate water polo. Four games later, the team had kicked off its season in a commanding fashion, outscoring its opponents 82-11. On Saturday, UCLA men’s water polo will […]