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On Deck This Week
No. 1 UCLA (0-0) opens the 2015 campaign at the Triton Invitational at the Canyonview Aquatic Center on the campus of UC San Diego this weekend. UCLA opens with No. 13 UC Davis (0-0) at 9:20 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 5 at Triton Pool. The Bruins conclude day one of competition with an exhibition match against league foe, No. 9 UC Irvine, at 1:20 p.m. at Triton Pool. UCLA will face Concordia (0-0) at 8:30 a.m. at Canyonview Pool on Sunday, Sept. 6. The Bruins conclude Triton Invitational play with another exhibition match, this time against league member No. 8 Pepperdine, at 1:50 p.m. at Canyonview Pool.
Defending Champions
UCLA won its ninth title in men's water polo in 2014 with the 9-8 win over USC on Dec. 7. It was the school's 112th NCAA Championship, which leads the nation.
National Rankings
UCLA opens the season on top of the sport as the squad holds the No. 1 position in the 2015 Preseason CWPA Top 20 Poll for the first time in school history.
| Rank | Team | 2014 Final Poll | Points |
| 1 | UCLA | 1 | 99 |
| 2 | USC | 2 | 93 |
| 3 | California | 5 | 90 |
| 4 | Stanford | 3 | 87 |
| 5 | Pacific | T-8 | 78 |
| 6 | Long Beach State | 4 | 75 |
| 7 | UC Santa Barbara | 7 | 66 |
| 8 | Pepperdine | 10 | 54 |
| 9 | UC Irvine | 12 | 53 |
| 10 | UC San Diego | 6 | 52 |
Returning All-Americans
UCLA returns six All-Americans, led by first-teamers Gordon Marshall and goalkeeper Garrett Danner. Marshall scored the game-winner in the 2014 National Championship to finish the year with 39 goals, while Danner has led the MPSF in goals-against average for the past two seasons (5.91 in 2014; 6.32 in 2013).
UCLA also returns All-American Daniel McClintick, a senior utility who was named 2014 NCAA Tournament MVP after scoring four goals in the championship game. He was fourth on the team in scoring last year with 41 goals (1.41 goals per game ranked 22nd in the MPSF).
The Bruins also return a pair of third team All-Americans in senior defender Anthony Daboub and junior attacker Ryder Roberts. Roberts missed seven games due to injury, but still managed to finish fifth on the team in scoring with 30 goals. Regarded as one of the best defenders in the country, Daboub picked up his scoring late in the season, racking up goals in 11 of his last 15 matches, to finish with a total of 20 goals in 2014.
Junior defender Chancellor Ramirez, an honorable mention All-American last season, scored 17 goals on the year, with almost half of his total (eight goals) coming against the top five teams in the country.
UCLA Picked to Win MPSF
In the most decisive preseason men's water polo coaches' poll in MPSF history, the UCLA men's water polo team has been selected to finish first among 10 teams in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) preseason coaches' poll, as announced by the conference office.
UCLA collected 78 points and eight first-place votes to headline the 2015 edition. The 12-point differential over second-place USC (66) surpassed the Trojans' previous record 10-point selection at the top of the 2008 poll.
The Bruins, who topped the annual preseason poll for the first time since 2005, are the defending NCAA Champions and finished unbeaten in the 2014 MPSF regular season.
| Rank | Team | Points (First-Place) | 2014 Record | 2014 MPSF Record (Finish) |
| 1 | UCLA | 78 (8) | 29-3 | 8-0 (1st) |
| 2 | USC | 66 | 24-7 | 6-2 (3rd) |
| 3T | California | 65 (1) | 22-7 | 4-4 (5th) |
| 3T | Stanford | 65 (1) | 26-4 | 7-1 (2nd) |
| 5 | Pacific | 44 | 14-12 | 2-6 (6th-Tie) |
| 6 | Long Beach State | 42 | 20-7 | 5-3 (4th) |
| 7 | UC Santa Barbara | 31 | 11-15 | 0-8 (9th) |
| 8 | UC Irvine | 28 | 15-14 | 2-6 (6th-Tie) |
| 9 | Pepperdine | 22 | 11-15 | 2-6 (6th-Tie) |
| 10 | San Jose State | 9 | 0-0 | First Year |
Ready to Lead
The Bruins return several letterwinners from last year's championship season that are poised to have leading roles after the graduation of eight seniors. In addition to the six returning All-Americans, UCLA returns juniors Patrick Fellner (22 goals), Alec Zwaneveld (11 goals) and Patrick Woepse (11 goals) as well as sophomores Alex Roelse (28 goals), Matt Farmer (20 goals), Max Irving (16 goals), Jack Grover (11 goals) and James Robinson (nine goals).
Ready to Make an Impact
Bruin fans will get their first glimpse of several redshirt freshmen that sat out last season. The group includes David Stiling (Beaverton, Ore.), Corbett Kruse (Los Angeles, Calif.), Warren Snyder (La Cañada, Calif.), Austin Rone (Coronado, Calif.) and Kent Inoue (Huntington Beach, Calif.).
True Freshmen to Earn a Cap
A few true freshmen have earned a cap and will look to make an immediate impact in 2015. Those newcomers include goalkeeper Alex Wolf (Huntington Beach, Calif./Huntington Beach HS), attacker Spencer Farrar (Malibu, Calif./Agoura HS) and utility Max Staresinic (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny HS).
Fuentes Returns
Junior attacker Joey Fuentes, who played for UCLA in 17 matches in 2012, scoring 15 goals, has returned to the Bruins' squad after a two-year hiatus. He redshirted for UCLA in 2013 and was not on the team in 2014. He has been a full-time student at UCLA for the last three years.