Swimmers head east for season’s end

The No. 7 UCLA swimming and diving team will finish off its 2005
season and head out to Athens, Ga., this weekend to compete in the
University of Georgia Bulldog Invitational. The invitational runs
from Friday through Sunday, with competition beginning at 9:30 a.m.
all three days. Finals are scheduled for 5 p.m. on Friday and
Saturday and at 3 p.m. on Sunday. Along with the top-ranked
Bulldogs, the Bruins (5-1, 2-1 Pac-10) will compete against
nationally ranked schools Virginia, Auburn and California. The
Bruins will also face-off against non-ranked South Carolina and
Miami (Ohio). The Bruins lost their first Pac-10 meet Nov. 19, when
they fell to the University of Arizona in Tucson, Ariz. In Arizona,
senior Kim Vandenberg and junior Katie Nelson were the only team
members with first-place finishes, however in the loss, UCLA had
one NCAA “A” and five NCAA “B” time
qualifiers. At their last invitational in Texas, the Bruins took
third place behind Florida, and the meet champion Southern
Methodist University. At the SMU Invitational, junior Katie Arnold
led UCLA in scoring as she earned the title “high point
scorer” of the meet. Neither team finishing above the Bruins
in Texas will be present in Georgia this weekend.

A PLEASANT INVITATION: Jordan Harvey, senior
defender on the UCLA men’s soccer team, has been selected as
one of 54 graduating seniors to take part in the 2006 adidas MLS
Player Combine, which will be held for three days in Carson
starting Jan. 12. The initial list of players for the Player
Combine was determined by Division I coaches from several
conferences along with Major League Soccer coaches. The coaching
staffs and general managers from all 12 MLS teams will be in
attendance to scout the players at the MLS Player Combine,
searching for key additions to their rosters, as the MLS SuperDraft
will take place five days after the conclusion of the combine. In
his past two years as a Bruin, Harvey has started all 20 games of
each season, contributing significantly to the Bruins’ stingy
defense. This season, Harvey earned accolades as Soccer
America’s Player of the Week after scoring two goals in a
pair of games against Bay Area rivals Stanford and Cal. Added to
his collection of honors was a selection as a member of the
Pac-10’s second team, an improvement from his honorable
mentions in 2002 and 2004.

WATER POLO ACCOLADES: Five members of the No. 5
UCLA men’s water polo team have received All-MPSF honors as
voted on by MPSF head coaches. Senior attacker David Pietsch was
named to the All-MPSF second team after leading the Bruins in
scoring with 39 goals on the season. This is the first All-MPSF
honor for Pietsch who has 75 total goals in his career at UCLA.
Junior goalkeeper Will Didinger was named to the All-MPSF third
team after notching a team and career-high 191 saves in 26 games
played. Didinger held an average of 7.35 saves per match with a
6.04 goals-against average. Along with Pietsch and Didinger,
juniors Logan Powell, Christian Pulido and Grant Zider each earned
All-MPSF honorable mention honors. Powell finished second on the
team with 34 goals, Pulido with 18 goals, and Zider with 25. Pulido
is a two-time All-MPSF All-Academic honoree. UCLA finished their
2005 season with a 21-8 record and a fifth place finish at the MPSF
Championships.

KERSEE HONORED: Bobby Kersee was named 2005
Nike Coach of the Year by USA Track & Field on Tuesday for his
work as the UCLA women’s track and field team. In a career
that has lasted nearly three decades, Kersee has coached the likes
of track and field greats Gail Devers, Greg Foster, Valerie Brisco
and his wife, Jackie Joyner-Kersee.

Compiled by Erin Wagner, Bruin Sports reporter and Ajaybir
Behniwal, Bruin Sports senior staff.