CLAIRE ZUGMEYER Sophomore goalie Brandon
Brooks blocks a goal against the Pepperdine Waves in a
game earlier this season. The Bruins face the Trojans at USC’s
McDonald Swim Stadium this Saturday at 10 a.m.
By Rekha Rao
Daily Bruin Contributor
Every year, a game stands before the UCLA men’s water polo
team that stems from years of unparalleled rivalry and past
grievances.
This weekend, in its third conference game of the season, the
team plays cross-town rival No. 1 USC.
The Bruins come into the weekend on a four-game winning streak.
Last weekend, they beat UC Santa Barbara 11-3 on Friday and
Pepperdine 13-6 on Sunday.
The last times the two teams met this season on Sept. 17, USC
prevailed, 5-4.
“We beat them in Hawaii, and we might have been a little
overconfident the first time we played them,” said senior
Dave Parker. “It was kind of an eye-opener. I didn’t
realize how good they were.”
Taking that loss into consideration, the Bruins hope to improve
and change the outcome in this game.
“We won’t be as lackadaisical,” Parker said.
“We will be sharp right from the beginning. We won’t
take them as lightly as we did last time.”
UCLA is looking at the last loss for motivation to win this time
around.
“We know we made mistakes the first time we played
them,” said senior playmaker Adam Wright. “We saw a
video on it, but as of lately we have been playing really well. If
we do the right things, we will do fine.”
USC usually starts with about five European players who have
played water polo since childhood and show that experience in their
game.
“They are a fundamentally sound team,” said Bruin
head coach Adam Krikorian. “They have some good shooters, and
some good two-meter men that we need to prepare for.”
The Trojans lost to Cal last weekend in overtime, 9-8. If they
prepare, the Bruins have the opportunity to catch the Trojans on
the heel of a loss.
“It should slow their momentum down,” Wright said.
“They had eight wins and no losses, but this loss is
key.”
And preparing is what the Bruins have been doing. They have been
practicing for this game for a majority of the season.
“In big games, it comes down to who wins the 6-on-5,
5-on-6 battle. We just have to keep doing the things that we have
been doing,” Krikorian said.
Defense seems to be the key with the Bruins this season. They
allowed only three goals in the game against UCSB and just six
against Pepperdine.
Sophomore goalie Brandon Brooks leads the defense that Krikorian
said is the key to the team’s success.
Although the rivalry between the two schools is strong, most
players don’t see the game as a defining moment in the
season.
“We have rivalries with everyone. We only have two teams
in the conference that get to go to the NCAAs so every game is a
rivalry,” Krikorian said.
The No. 1 ranking could be at stake in this game. The Bruins
currently stand at No. 2 and if they beat the Trojans, they could
easily take over the No. 1 spot.
“This game is important because it is a game, not because
it is USC,” Krikorian added.
The Bruins are looking forward, rather than backwards, at the
season and rankings.
“Rankings don’t really matter, it is all about wins
and losses. Sure it is nice to be ranked No. 1, but it gives us
more motivation to do well,” Wright said.
The Bruins also face the difficult task of playing at the
Trojans’ home pool, where both teams face intimidation.
“Obviously it is difficult to play at there,”
Krikorian said. “They get really fired up, and they always
have a good crowd.”