Top-Seeded UCLA Heads to MPSF Tourney
November 20, 2015 | Men's Water Polo
SOCIAL MEDIA: MWP on Twitter | MWP on Facebook | MWP on Instagram
On Deck This Week
No. 1 UCLA (25-0, 9-0 MPSF) heads to USC's Uytengsu Aquatics Center for the 2015 MPSF Tournament on Friday, Nov. 20 through Sunday, Nov. 22. All 10 teams will be in action on Friday, competing for the league's automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament that UCLA will be hosting on Dec. 5-6. The Bruins open the MPSF Tournament with the winner of the No. 8 Long Beach State (11-14)/No. 9 Pepperdine (11-14) game at 4:00 p.m. The winner of that game will move into the 2:30 p.m. semifinal on Saturday (Nov. 21) against the winners of the No. 4 USC(18-5)/No. 5 Stanford (20-7) game. On Sunday (Nov. 22), placement games will take place, with marquee matchups coming in the 3 p.m. third-place game and the 4:30 p.m. championship bout.
Follow the Bruins
Fans can access ticket links as well as live streams, stats and schedule information at the MPSF Tournament Central page. USC will be live streaming every game on Friday and Saturday, as well Sunday's 7th and 5th place games,here. Pac-12 Networks will be televising Sunday's third place and championship games on Pac-12 Bay Area and Pac-12 Los Angeles, with Jim Watson and Greg Mescall on the call. There will also be live stats, which you can access on the men's water polo schedule page on this web site.
2015 NCAA Men's Water Polo Championship
Defending champion UCLA is the host institution for the 2015 NCAA Men's Water Polo Championship on Dec. 5-6 at Dirks Pool at Spieker Aquatics Center. For more information on the Championship, click here. Tickets are on sale now for two-day packages for $65.00 for adults (general admission) and $35.00 for youth and students. There is also two-day packages for &75.00 for adults/youth/students (deck seating) for $75.00. To purchase tickets, click here.
MPSF Statistical Rankings
There are three Bruins in the top 25 of the latest MPSF statistical rankings in scoring, led by junior attacker Ryder Roberts at No. 4 (49 goals, 22 games, 2.23 gpg). Junior attacker Patrick Fellner is third on the team in scoring with 33 goals (1.65 gpg), which ranks 16th in the MPSF. Sophomore Max Irving has scored 13 goals in his last six games and has vaulted into second on the squad in scoring with 38 goals (1.52 gpg) which ranks 20th in the MPSF.
Goalies Leading the Pack
While all four Bruins have spent time in the cage for UCLA this season, only junior Garrett Danner has played enough quarters to qualify for the MPSF rankings. Danner currently leads the league in goals against average at 5.98 gaa. It is the third-straight year he has accomplished that feat. He is also second in the MPSF in saves per game (12.46 spg). The remaining three goalkeepers all have solid goals against averages this season with sophomore Elliot Ordway leading the group (2.67 gaa), followed by sophomore Aleksandar Ruzic (3.64 gaa) and freshman Alex Wolf (4.05 gaa).
True Freshmen Earn Caps
Three true freshmen earned a cap this season and have made an 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 26.64 quarters in goal for the Bruins and has registered 70 saves while allowing 27 goals (4.05 gaa). Farrar has notched 28 goals which is fourth on the team and he is only one of four Bruins to play in all 24 matches. He is also fifth on the team in steals with 21. Staresinic has played in seven matches, starting once, and has tallied five goals, four steals and three assists.
Daboub Getting it Done
Senior defender Anthony Daboub is tied for second on the team in scoring over the last 11 games, tallying 19 goals in that span (1.7 gpg). He has recorded at least one goal in nine of those contests, including a career-high four goals in the Kap7 SoCal Invitational title victory over No. 2 USC on Oct. 11. He had only scored a total of seven goals in his first 14 games of the year. With 26 goals scored this season, it is the most in a single season for his career (had 22 his sophomore season in 2013).
Roberts Leads in Multiple Categories
Junior attacker Ryder Roberts continues to lead the team in scoring with 49 goals on the year (2.23 gpg), which ranks fourth in the league. He leads the team in assists (31), sprints won (19) and field blocks (15) and is fourth in steals (22). He has played in 22 games this year and has scored at least one goal in 21 of them (none in the 12-8 win at Stanford (Oct. 17). He has scored at least two goals in each of his last seven outings and in 16 games this season.
Irving Picking Up His Scoring
Attacker Max Irving has scored at least one goal in each of the last 11 games, a career-best streak for the sophomore and the longest current active streak for UCLA. He is tied for second on the team in scoring over the last 11 games, tallying 19 goals in that span (1.7 gpg). He has moved up to second on the squad in scoring with 38 goals (1.52 gpg) on the year, which currently ranks 20th in the MPSF.
Fellner on Fire
Attacker Patrick Fellner is third on the team in 33 total goals, but second in goals against average (1.65 gpg), which ranks 16th in the MPSF. The junior had scored at least one goal in 12 games, a career-best streak, until being shutout in his last game against USC (Nov. 15). He scored 22 goals in that span (1.83 gpg).
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 ninth on the team in scoring (15 goals) and is fifth on the squad in assists (20) in 11 matches played in 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 seventh straight week. Below is the top 10:
| Rank | Team | Last Week | Points |
| 1 | UCLA | 1 | 100 |
| 2 | Pacific | 2 | 95 |
| 3 | California | 3 | 90 |
| 4 | USC | 4 | 86 |
| 5 | Stanford | 5 | 80 |
| 6 | UC Santa Barbara | 6 | 75 |
| 7 | UC Irvine | 7 | 69 |
| 8 | Long Beach State | 8 | 66 |
| 9 | UC Davis | 9 | 54 |
| 10 | Brown | 11 | 51 |
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 |
