Men’s water polo dominates No. 2 University of the Pacific
Sophomore attacker Max Irving had two goals in the Bruins in the 11-5 win over the University of Pacific Tigers. (Keila Mayberry/Daily Bruin staff)
By Savannah Shapiro
Nov. 2, 2015 1:31 a.m.
With 2:53 remaining in the first half, UCLA was looking to break the tie against the University of the Pacific.
Following a steal from junior goalkeeper Garret Danner, junior defender Chancellor Ramirez drove down the lane and sent a shot to the back of the net, giving the Bruins a one-point advantage over the Tigers.
Thirty-seven seconds later, sophomore utility Alex Roelse extended the lead to 5-3, changing the pace of the game in which the No.1 Bruins (22-0, 6-0 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) would never look back against the No. 2 Tigers (20-3, 6-1), securing the 11-5 victory.
“We just really tried to come out hard and with energy from the start of the game because we knew two games ago we came out a little slow against Cal,” said sophomore attacker Max Irving. “So we were really trying to bring it with energy from the start and be ready to go.”
From then on, the momentum stayed with UCLA. The Bruins did not allow any goals from the Tigers in the third quarter and were able to push their lead even further with goals from Irving and junior attackers Ryder Roberts and Patrick Fellner.
“I think we really settled in in the third quarter,” Roberts said. “We established that if we just think and process what they are doing we don’t have to panic. If we panic we struggle; that’s what leads to 6-on-5s and them getting good scoring opportunities.”
Throughout the third quarter, Pacific could not break UCLA’s defense, nor stop its offense as the Bruins did not allow the Tigers a goal until the first minute of the fourth quarter.
“We knew that they were really going to come at us hard,” said coach Adam Wright. “They have a great team that’s very well coached and they run a little bit of a different style offense per se which makes it really tough to defend. Really, our guys, give them the credit, they did a great job of playing clean defense and communicating with each other and having awareness everywhere so that put us in a position to be successful.”
Danner ended the game with 12 saves and one assists, keeping the Tigers to a single-digit score.
“Guys were knocking down great shots and Garrett played very well in the goal which really gave us the time to attack on offense,” Irving said.
UCLA utilized its offensive scoring streak to its advantage, sending off shots and finding the back of the cage. Six Bruins were able to score offensively against the Tigers, with Roberts leading the scoring with three goals.
“The centers hold a really deep position forcing the other team to come back into the zone,” Roberts said. “We had a lot of big shots from some guys, Chancellor from the wing, Fellner also from the wing and from (senior defender Anthony) Daboub late in the game. Great shots.”
After this win, the Bruins remain undefeated in both regular season matchups and MPSF conference games, and have won 25 consecutive games, the second-longest streak in the program’s history.
“What we know is, we have a chance to get better, which is exciting,” Wright said. “Our record doesn’t dictate how a team will show up to play against us. Our record doesn’t dictate that we can just be great. No, it all comes back to how we want to train and who we want to beat.”
