The hierarchy within this matchup has never changed through more than two decades of competition.

No. 2 UCLA women’s water polo (6-0) will face off against No. 12 UC Irvine (3-5) on Saturday at Spieker Aquatic Center, where the latter will have the opportunity to extend its long-standing dominance against the former for the 36th time. The Bruins have never dropped a contest to the Anteaters.

UCLA enters the matchup fresh off a championship run at the Triton Invitational, where the Bruins went 4-0 across a three-day stretch at UC San Diego’s Canyonview Aquatic Center.

Against Arizona State, seven different Bruins found the back of the net, led by a career-high six goals from senior attacker Taylor Smith. Senior utility Anna Pearson added a hat trick and drew three exclusions along with a penalty. Guarding the net, junior goalkeeper Lauren Steele played the full match, recording 11 saves and two steals.

With several key contributors returning this season, UCLA has emphasized continuity while integrating younger players into its rotation.

“I really want to encourage the younger girls that it doesn’t matter how old you are, what age you are, what grade you are,” said senior attacker Taylor Smith. “You should always have confidence and trust that you’ve put in the hours of work and practice, and before even coming to UCLA, you’re here for a reason.”

The Bruins capped off the weekend with a 12-9 victory against then-No. 2 USC to claim the tournament title.

UCLA carried a 3-1 lead after the opening period and extended it with a 3-0 second-quarter advantage to take a 6-1 lead at halftime. While the Trojans trimmed the deficit in the third, the group still led 8-4 entering the fourth. Although USC outscored UCLA 5-4 in the final period, the Westwood bunch clinched the championship title.

UC Irvine enters the matchup in the win column following a 14-9 victory against Triton Invitational tournament host then-No. 12 UC San Diego on Feb. 1 to clinch a seventh-place finish.

Anteater attacker Lauren Hett, who scored five goals to lead her squad offensively, defined the contest. Converting on multiple power-play opportunities, Hett secured a hat trick midway through the second quarter and added two more scores after halftime.

Defeating Cal State Fullerton 22-4 to open the tournament before earning wins against No. 6 Arizona State and No. 5 Hawaiʻi to advance to the final, Smith led UCLA offensively throughout the invitational, recording 15 goals across four games.

Smith added five goals and an assist in the championship match against USC, finishing the tournament with 16 total points. She earned MPSF/Delfina Player of the Week honors for her tournament performance, marking the third such award of her career.

The Triton Invitational continued a challenging early-season slate for UCLA. Remaining undefeated in those contests, the squad averaged 14.6 goals scored per game while forfeiting just seven.

With a tournament win under their belt, the Bruins are now focused on maintaining their composure as the season continues.

“We just have to continue doing what’s working and stay really emotionally stable,” Smith said. “We’re not trying to get too high or too low, just trying to be intelligent and play our game and not be scared.”

Interim co-head coach Jason Falitz acknowledged the squad’s growing pains and emphasized the importance of learning through early-season mistakes.

“We’re still making a lot of mistakes, which is okay, we’re going to learn from those mistakes,” Falitz said. “We’re fortunate to have Lauren (Steele) back there in the cage, and quite honestly, she made some incredible saves.”

Junior goalkeeper Lauren Steele anchored the cage throughout UCLA’s title run.

And building off the first few matches of the 2026 campaign, Steele seems poised for the new fresh season.

“I just want to remember to stay in the moment, keep watching my body position in the cage, obviously watching film, listening to the coaches and taking that feedback in,” Steele said. “It’s just being really present and having a really mindful mindset about my play.”

The matchup against UC Irvine will present another nonconference test for UCLA as the team continues its early-season slate. UCLA will have the chance to pair its balanced scoring attack with disciplined defense as it seeks to extend a matchup streak against its Saturday opponent that has stood for more than two decades.

“At the end of the day, you have to go out there and you have to play,” Falitz said. “That’s what we’re focused on right now, and whatever the role is, we’ve been putting people all over the pool in different positions, so it’s a positive.”