We could be witnessing a dynasty in the making.
Only six UCLA programs have ever won three straight national championships. The feat has not been accomplished in nearly two decades: the most recent squad to join the list was women’s water polo following a dominant stretch from 2005 to 2009.
The men’s team is building its case to join that list.
UCLA men’s water polo, which won the national title in 2024 and 2025, has entered every season across the last three decades as a championship contender. The Bruins have appeared in the NCAA championship match 13 times since the turn of the century, winning it all eight times across that span.
Despite that sustained success, none of the championship runs have come in threes.
Good thing there’s no time like the present.
The Bruins have practically existed in a league of their own over the last two years. Compiling an overall record of 53-4, the group has recorded 20 double-digit victories and has held its opponent below 10 goals on 34 occasions.
Of all the contributing factors, continuity may have done the most to fuel that domination.
Sixteen current players on the Bruin roster were part of the title-winning 2024 squad – a core that has continued to develop and grow in the pool.
“The players who have been here for one, two, three years, they carry more responsibility,” coach Adam Wright said after the Bruins’ two victories at the season-opening Triton Invitational. “That’s from the pregame meeting to the stretching to how we warm up to how we play, no matter who we play. We play one way, and for us, they’re the drivers of the culture and the standard.”
The road to a third trophy may all begin with the team’s leader, and Wright has the high standard of excellence required to get the job done. Even before his coaching career, he was winning championships.
An alumnus of UCLA men’s water polo, Wright helped lead back-to-back title-winning squads in 1999 and 2000. In his senior year, he netted 39 goals en route to an All-America honorable mention and All-MPSF Second Team honors.
As Wright took to coaching, the Huntington Beach local stood out early for his recruiting ability. While serving as an assistant coach for the Bruin men’s and women’s squads, Wright helped secure the top men’s recruiting class in the nation following the 2008 season.
Since taking charge in 2009, Wright has led the men’s team to a .850 overall win rate and six national titles. Of all the players he has developed across that span, the name that may stand out and contribute the most in the hope of securing a three-peat is Ryder Dodd.
Freshly an upperclassman, the junior attacker has already taken the reins as the undisputed leader of the Bruin squad. The Long Beach local is the reigning back-to-back Peter J. Cutino Award winner, labeling him the best men’s water polo player in the NCAA.
Dodd burst onto the scene as a freshman in 2024, leading the blue and gold with 102 goals on a .557 clip. He also led the conference in total points with 134, was named MPSF West Player and Newcomer of the Year and captured his first of two national titles when UCLA took down crosstown rival USC in the final match.
The energy Dodd has brought to Westwood over his first two seasons has been palpable. With him at the helm, the squad has played as a unit and found its stride when it mattered most.
“A lot of the guys on our team are older and were on those championship teams,” Dodd said at the 2026 MPSF Media Day. “Them carrying the legacy and the standard is really important for us. We’ve got a lot of guys that have been together for a while, but then obviously a lot of new guys. So our goal is going to be to integrate them and get them ready.”
With limited roster turnover between the last few seasons, Dodd is surrounded by plenty of familiar weapons in the pool. But Wright also did some work in the transfer portal this offseason, and those newcomers could support a return to the top for the third-straight year.
Headlining the transfer class is junior attacker Danilo Dragović from UC Santa Barbara. He was named to the 2025 All-Big West First Team after leading the Gauchos with 63 goals and logging a conference-high 83 total points.
Joining Dragović in the move to Westwood were three fifth-years from Stanford. While goalkeeper Griffen Price and defender Jack Merrill did not see action with the Cardinals last season, attacker Chase McFarland appeared in 24 outings and tallied 12 goals along with 15 assists.
Despite seeing no minutes last year, Merrill and Price have immediately hit the pool for the Bruins and appeared in each of the squad’s first two matches of the 2026 season. Across the doubleheader, Price tallied 13 saves, while Merrill added six total goals.
That kind of production from players who just arrived in Westwood is exactly the versatility that elite teams boast when contending for three straight titles.
“It’s going to get harder every year,” Merrill said after the two opening wins. “Because you won last year doesn’t mean you’re going to win this year, and you have to rise to the occasion again. We’re heading in a good direction, and we’re going to get out there and compete to hopefully bring a third one home to Westwood.”
The time is now to get the job done. As the Bruins’ core pieces from the last few seasons get older, the squad may only have so much time left to sustain the level of excellence the Bruin faithful have become accustomed to.
But if anyone can, a thoroughly experienced head honcho and potentially the best men’s water polo player in the world will help complete the task a third-straight time.
“What we do know is that we’re up against something UCLA has never done,” Wright said. “We know we have our work cut out, and like Ryder said, we’ve got a motivated group and a new group. It’ll be an exciting process, but it’ll be harder than it was the last two years. Period.”
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