New faces and new combinations in the pool headline the Bruins heading into their season-opening contests.
No. 3 UCLA men’s water polo will face off against No. 7 UC Santa Barbara, Cal State Fullerton, UC Irvine, and Concordia University Irvine at the Triton Invitational at UC San Diego on Saturday and Sunday. With just under half of the squad recently participating in the World University Games in China, the team had fewer than three weeks to get back into their rhythm and work on their chemistry in practice.
“The hard part about China was we had to split the group, and now being back together in a short amount of time, they’re really growing really well together,” said coach Adam Wright. “There’s a lot of times where they’re tired because of the sheer amount of time going into this period. And they responded well, whether it’s with their intensity, their attitude, how they’re interacting with each other.”
Freshman utility Ben Liechty, who was on the Team USA roster that UCLA represented in China, is a new face for the Bruins. The Orange County local emerged as an attacking threat at the WUG, notching two hat tricks against international foes
Liechty shared a similar sentiment to his coach about the team’s preseason preparation.
“Building that team chemistry between players who were in China, who spent every second with each other for 20 days, and then the guys training really hard at home, we were able to see how they were training and come back and just join in with them,” Liechty said.
Wright added that the freshman plays a lot older than he is and is a steady presence within the pool. But the first-year Bruin isn’t the only unvarying player ready to make an impact.
Redshirt senior attacker Jack Larsen is one of four players listed as a redshirt senior or older. Entering his fifth year in Westwood, the 2022 All-MPSF West second-teamer will have the chance to score 20 goals for the second consecutive campaign.
However, as a teammate, Liechty recognizes Larsen as more than a goal threat, but as a source of motivation for the team.
“From a leadership standpoint, he’s (Larsen) been super helpful, ” Liechty said. “His words of encouragement really helped me through practice and built my confidence.”
With four matches coming up over the weekend, two against the Gauchos and Anteaters – teams the Bruins defeated in 2022 – UCLA will have the opportunity to begin the season with a four-game sweep, a feat it accomplished in each of the past two seasons.
Larsen said the team’s new roster is equipped with fast learners ready to make a mark in their first games.
“We’re getting along well, building chemistry with new young talent, and they’re doing a great job learning the system and making sure they’re on top of being in shape,” Larsen said.
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