Daily Bruin File Photo Junior Dan
Yeilding gets ready to throw the ball in a match last
season.
By Adam Titcher
Daily Bruin Contributor
In the midst of a rebuilding year, the No. 3 UCLA men’s
water polo team is still displaying tremendous effort. The Bruins
have improved to 3-0 overall and 1-0 in conference games, after
defeating Long Beach State 8-6 and Loyola Marymount 9-4 last
week.
This weekend UCLA hosts No. 10 Pacific (1-2) and No. 1 Stanford
(2-0). The matches, which will be held at the Sunset Recreation
Center, will weigh on all three teams’ postseason
opportunities.
“We gotta take care of business on Saturday before
Stanford (on Sunday),” said junior 2-meter defenseman Matt
Flesher. “Pacific is still a conference game.”
Conference games matter because they determine seeding for the
NCAA Championship tournament.
But Pacific will not be easy. While the Bruins are 1-2, the
match is important enough not to be overlooked.
“Anytime you get into a conference game, it just sets up
for the big tournament,” sophomore driver Albert Garcia said.
“I came to UCLA to win titles.”
Pacific is a must-win for the Bruins to increase their title
hopes, as UCLA is a heavy underdog for Sunday’s game versus
top-ranked Stanford.
While UCLA looks poised and ready, the Stanford match will be a
battle against a very talented club that features freshman phenom
Tony Azevedo.
“They have guys that can definitely score,” UCLA
head coach Adam Krikorian said. “But Tony Azevedo is one of
the best players in the world.”
However, Stanford head coach Dante Dettamanti does not think his
team will have it easy, either.
“They’re a typical UCLA team,” he said.
“They’re definitely talented.”
Though his team is considered the best in the nation, Dettamanti
does not like the national polls. He thinks the Mountain Pacific
Sports Federation is quite talented with seven solid teams,
including UCLA and Stanford.
He questions the outcome of Sunday’s meet due to the
cancelation of the Southern California Tournament, which would
usually provide a good scouting opportunity. But due to the tragic
attacks on the East Coast, neither club has been able to see the
other play. UCLA, which lost six seniors to graduation last season,
will look for great play from everyone.
“I’m trying to get everyone fired up for
Stanford,” Garcia said. “We are not going to roll out
just because we lost six seniors.”