No. 3 UCLA Opens 2013 At Michigan Invitational
January 18, 2013 | Women's Water Polo
Jan. 18, 2013
LOS ANGELES - The No. 3 UCLA women's water polo team kicks off its 2013 season at the Michigan Invitational this weekend. The Bruins will face San Diego State and Michigan on Saturday (Jan. 19) before facing Colorado State and Indiana on Sunday (Jan. 20). UCLA will play its first 12 games of the regular season away from home before hosting a non-conference game against Cal Lutheran on Feb. 9 at 1:00 p.m. in Spieker Aquatics Center).
2013 Michigan Invitational Schedule
Saturday, Jan. 19 (times are Pacific)
6:00 a.m. - Colorado State at Michigan
7:30 a.m. - Indiana vs. San Jose State
9:00 a.m. - San Diego State vs. UCLA
1:00 p.m. - Indiana vs. Colorado State
2:30 p.m. - San Jose State vs. San Diego State
4:00 p.m. - UCLA at Michigan
Sunday, Jan. 20
5:00 a.m. - Michigan vs. San Jose State
6:10 a.m. - Indiana vs. San Diego State
7:20 a.m. - Colorado State vs. UCLA
9:15 a.m. - San Diego State at Michigan
10:25 a.m. - Colorado State vs. San Jose State
11:45 a.m. - UCLA vs. Indiana
Who's Back for UCLA in 2013?
The Bruins return several key contributors from last season's team, but must absorb the departures of key scorers KK Clark, Sarah Orozco and Hannah Sebenaler and veteran goalkeeper Caitlin Dement. Clark was a First Team All-American in 2012 and finished the season leading UCLA in goals (58), steals (40) and field blocks (17).
Dement, a First Team All-American, also earned MPSF Player of the Year honors in 2012. The Bruins' senior goalkeeper logged a 5.60 goals against average and totaled 250 saves in all 27 matches. Orozco, an Honorable Mention All-American last season, capped her senior season with 28 goals, the second-highest total on the team. The Bruins welcome back Third Team All-American, Emily Greenwood, who tied for third on the team with 27 goals. Greenwood concluded her junior season with a team-leading 73 earned exclusions in 2012. The 6-foot-0 utility was fourth on the squad with 28 steals. Honorable Mention All-American, Becca Dorst, finished tied for third on the team with 27 goals. She converted on nearly 43 percent of her shot attempts (27-of-63) and registered 32 steals, 16 field blocks, 14 assists and 17 earned exclusions. Sophomore Emily Donohoe secured All-MPSF Newcomer Team honors after registering 15 goals during her rookie season while compiling eight assists, four steals and three field blocks.
Top Bruin Newcomers for 2013
Rachel Fattal: Los Alamitos High School, SoCal Water Polo Club. Member of the USA Junior National Team. 2012 Division 1 Player of the Year.
Alys Williams: Edison High School, Huntington Beach Water Polo Club. Member of the USA Youth National team that traveled to Perth, Australia this December to compete in the first-ever Youth World Championship.
India Forster: Agoura Hills High School, Los Angeles Water Polo Club. All-CIF SS Division 2 First Team in 2012. Earned Player of the Year accolades in 2011 from the Ventura County Star after leading Agoura High School with 101 goals en route to the Marmonte League championship.
Kodi Hill: Dos Pueblos High School, Santa Barbara Water Polo Club. All-CIF SS Division 1 accolades as a sophomore, junior, and senior at DPHS. MVP at 2010 Junior Olympics. Gold Medalist at 2012 Junior Olympics.
One Year Ago at Michigan
UCLA has opened its season at the Michigan Invitational each of the last five years. Last January, the Bruins went 3-0 at the round-robin tournament, securing victories against Colorado State (9-4), Indiana (10-5) and Michigan (10-8). KK Clark led the Bruins with seven goals in the three tournament matches.
Looking Down the Road
After the Michigan Invitational, the Bruins UCLA will travel up the California coast to compete in the UC Santa Barbara Invitational. Again, the Bruins will have four matches in about 48 hours, this time against UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara, Cal State Northridge and an opponent to be determined. Then the Bruins take part in the Stanford Invitational on Feb. 2-3. The Bruins will face Hawaii, California and Indiana at Stanford, with their final match to be decided by how the Bruins play in their first three contests that weekend.
2012 Season at a Glance
UCLA posted a 23-4 record in 2012, finishing third at the NCAA Tournament with a 10-9 win over UC Irvine in the third-place game. The Bruins finished the MPSF season with a 5-2 mark. The Bruins won the 2012 MPSF Tournament with a 9-8 overtime victory over Stanford, securing the automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament.
Brooks on Deck for Year Four
The Bruins are led by fourth-year head coach Brandon Brooks, who has compiled a 71-19 record in three seasons as UCLA's head coach. Brooks played for the UCLA men's water polo team from 1999-2002, starring as the team's goalkeeper for four seasons. Brooks helped UCLA capture the 1999 and 2000 NCAA titles. He also played for the USA National Team in the 2004 and 2008 Olympics, leading Team USA to a silver medal in 2008 in Beijing.
UCLA Water Polo on Twitter
Fans can receive in-game updates of UCLA's home games in addition to weekly news and other updates about the UCLA men's and women's water polo programs on Twitter (UCLAWaterPolo).
