UCLA loss to USC sends ripples through water polo world
Coach Jovan Vavic and the No. 2 USC men’s water polo team accomplished something this past weekend that no team had done in 57 games – beat UCLA – but there’s little time for revelry as the postseason begins this weekend. (Miriam Bribiesca/Photo editor)
By Michael Hull
Nov. 14, 2016 11:51 p.m.
The most exciting men’s water polo games in the past two seasons have all been at USC’s Uytengsu Aquatics Center.
Last year, it was the championship game at the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation conference tournament, the most competitive water polo contest in the country according to UCLA coach Adam Wright. The Bruins’ unbeaten record was put to the test in an 11-10 double-overtime victory over then-No. 3 California.
This year it was the Crosstown Splashdown. No. 1 UCLA and its undefeated record once again made its way to Uytengsu, but this time the status quo in the water polo world was turned upside down.
UCLA lost – by one goal to USC, the final blow coming with under a minute to go off a ricochet – something that hasn’t happened in nearly two years.
A sense of disbelief and shock was apparent in the UCLA section.
When the final buzzer sounded, the stadium went nuts. The Trojan fans, who heckled Wright and the Bruins during timeouts and in between quarters from the bleachers, combined forces with the marching band to deafen any nearby activity.
[Related: NCAA record run ends as men’s water polo falls 8-7 to USC]
“We have been struggling the last couple of years to beat UCLA, they have really developed a great culture, a great commitment to excellence,” said USC coach Jovan Vavic in the postgame interview with the Pac-12 Network, later having to elevate his voice over the background noise. “We are now trying to catch up. It was exciting, it was fun, I’m really happy for my guys.”
Both of the national championship victories for Wright came at USC’s expense, and since the beginning of the 2014 season, the Trojans had lost to the Bruins eight times.
Ali Walters, USC junior utility James Walters’ sister, has seen him beat UCLA only once in his career. Her late brother Jon Walters and the 2013 Trojans defeated the Bruins once before he passed away.
But for James Walters, it was just his second rivalry win over almost three years.
“It was crazy, and it was exhilarating. It was a nail-biter, we were so excited for them,” Ali Walters said. “They’ve gone back and forth with UCLA, and it was awesome.”
USC goalie McQuin Baron, who faced off against his former Olympic teammate – UCLA junior utility Alex Roelse – delivered a nine-save performance in the game, including on the Bruins’ final offensive possession, to seal the upset.
“We’re going to enjoy it this weekend,” Baron said. “UCLA is one of the hardest teams to beat, one of the most intelligent teams in the NCAA. It’s a difficult team to beat, we know we have another full week of watching film and preparing for them again.”
It was the first time USC had beaten UCLA in over two years, but the consequence of it happening Saturday is there’s little time for revelry – it’s the postseason contests that matter more, and the first one is less than four days away.
The two teams could potentially face each other again this upcoming weekend at the MPSF conference championship tournament.
“It’s only one win after all,” Vavic said to the Pac-12 Network. “If we see UCLA again in conference finals and we lose to them, then this win doesn’t really mean anything.”
And those potential upcoming match-ups were what the Bruin fans were thinking of while they sat on the bleachers and the Trojan fans jumped on theirs.
“I think they’re going to go into the championships with maybe a little less pressure,” said Joyce Snyder, mother of UCLA redshirt sophomore defender Warren Snyder. “Even Warren’s dad was like, ‘You know, we’ve had a great run. We’re going to move on.’ At least the pressure is off for maintaining that undefeated record, and maybe it puts them in a different level now. You just have to keep pushing forward, and they push through so much.”
The Bruins have said from the very beginning that their goal was to win another national championship – keeping the win streak and winning the Crosstown Splashdown wasn’t necessarily a part of that equation.
Now, without both the win streak and the Splashdown crown, the things they have to do to get there haven’t changed. They’ll just have to do it after a loss, for the first time in the past two seasons.
