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On Deck This Week
No. 1 UCLA (5-0) heads to Stanford, Calif., for the 2015 Kap7 NorCal Invitational. The Bruins have made the final in each of the last three years, winning the 2013 and 2014 titles. UCLA opens with 16th-seeded Chapman (2-2) in the first round on Saturday, Sept. 19 at 8:00 a.m. at Belardi Pool. If successful, the Bruins will face the winner of eighth-seeded UC Davis and ninth-seeded Pepperdine in the quarterfinals at 3:25 p.m., also at Belardi Pool. A win in the quarters will advance UCLA to the semifinals at Avery Pool on Sunday, Sept. 20 at 10:50 a.m. The third-place match is slated for 4:50 p.m., followed by the championship match at 6:15 p.m., both at Avery Pool.
Kap7 NorCal Invitational
Stanford hosts the annual Kap7 NorCal Invitational this weekend (Sept. 19-20). General Admission tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for children and students. Children five and under are free. To purchase tickets, click here. For more information, including a complete schedule for both pools, click here.
Balanced Scoring Attack
Although we are just five games into the 2015 season, all 21 offensive players on the UCLA squad have scored at least one goal. Junior attacker Joey Fuentes and sophomore attacker Max Irving are tied for the scoring lead at 10 goals each (2.0 gpg), which currently ranks 14th in the MPSF. Junior center Gordon Marshall has scored eight goals in three games (2.67 gpg), which is the highest goals per game average on the team and ranks ninth in the league. Junior attacker Patrick Fellner is also tied at 14th in the MPSF in scoring with six goals in three games (2.0 gpg).
Goalies Leading the Pack
While four different Bruins have spent time in the cage for UCLA this season, two of them are in the top two in the MPSF in goals against average after two weeks of play. Freshman Alex Wolf leads the league in goals against average at 4.00. Junior Garrett Danner is second at 4.92. Both sophomore goalkeepers Elliot Ordway (2.00 gaa) and Aleksandar Ruzic (4.57 gaa) would rank in the top five, but haven't played enough periods to qualify.
True Freshmen Earn Caps
A few true freshmen have earned a cap and have already started 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). Wolf has played eight quarters in goal for the Bruins and has registered 21 saves while allowing eight goals (4.0 gaa). Farrar has notched eight goals in his first five appearances, which is tied for third in scoring. He leads the team in steals (eight). Staresinic has played in all five matches, starting once, and has tallied two goals and two assists.
No Rust for Fuentes
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. Even with the two-year lay-off, Fuentes is currently tied for first on the team in scoring (10 goals) and leads the squad in assists (14) in the first five matches of 2015.
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 retained its spot atop the CWPA Top 20 Poll for the third straight week. Below is the top 10:
| Rank | Team | Last Week | Points |
| 1 | UCLA | 1 | 99 |
| 2 | USC | 2 | 95 |
| 3 | California | 3 | 90 |
| 4 | Stanford | 4 | 86 |
| 5 | Pacific | 5 | 82 |
| 6 | UC Santa Barbara | 6 | 74 |
| 7 | Long Beach State | 7 | 69 |
| 8 | UC Irvine | 8 | 62 |
| 9 | Pepperdine | 10 | 56 |
| 10 (T) | UC San Diego | 9 | 53 |
| 10 (T) | UC Davis | 12 | 53 |
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 |