Saturday, January 25
Ann Arbor, MI
7:30 AM

UCLA

vs

Pacific

Lexi Liebowitz
Junior Lexi Liebowitz scored two goals in the Bruins' last game, a win over OUAZ at the UCSB Winter Invitational.
Photo by: Minette Rubin

No. 5 UCLA to Compete at the Michigan Invitational

January 23, 2020 | Women's Water Polo

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LOS ANGELES – No. 5 UCLA (4-1, 0-0 MPSF) heads to Ann Arbor, Mich., to compete in the Michigan Invitational on Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 25-26 at Canham Natatorium. The Bruins open tournament play with No. 11 Pacific (1-0) on Jan. 25 at 7:30 a.m. PT. The Bruins close out play on Saturday at No. 7 Michigan (2-2) at 3:15 p.m. PT. UCLA continues play on Sunday with No. 24 Marist (0-3) at 7:30 a.m. PT and closes out the tournament at 12:00 p.m. PT with No. 21 Wagner (0-0).

SCHEDULE AT A GLANCE
Saturday, Jan. 25 (Canham Natatorium)
7:30 AM PT – No. 5 UCLA vs. No. 11 Pacific (Live Stats)
3:15 PM PT – No. 5 UCLA at No. 7 Michigan (Live Stats)

Sunday, Jan. 26 (Canham Natatorium)
7:30 AM PT – No. 5 UCLA vs. No. 24 Marist (Live Stats)
12:00 PM PT – No. 5 UCLA vs. No. 21 Wagner (Live Stats)

SERIES HISTORY
This weekend the UCLA Bruins will take on four nationally-ranked teams at the Michigan Invitational that they have a combined record of 55-0 against. UCLA is 24-0 all-time against the Pacific Tigers and 26-0 vs. the Michigan Wolverines. Additionally, the Bruins are 2-0 all-time against the Marist Red Foxes and 3-0 vs. the Wagner Seahawks.

RECAPPING LAST WEEK
The Bruins went 4-1 at the UCSB Winter Invitational, defeating No. 22 CSUN, 16-6, No. 13 UC San Diego, 8-6, Iona College, 16-4, and OUAZ, 14-2. UCLA fell at No. 11 UC Santa Barbara, 9-8, after going scoreless for over 18 minutes (began in the first quarter and ended in the fourth)..

HILL NAMED MPSF/KAP7 PLAYER OF THE WEEK
UCLA freshman Abbi Hill (Santa Barbara, CA/Dos Pueblos HS) has been named the MPSF/KAP7 Player of the Week as announced by the league office on Jan. 21. The freshman utility led the Bruins in scoring, points, and steals and was second in assists, drawn exclusions and field blocks in her opening weekend of collegiate competition, as the Bruins went 4-1 at the UCSB Winter Invitational (Jan. 17-19). UCLA had wins over No. 22 CSUN, No. 13 UC San Diego, Iona, and Ottawa. Hill scored a game-high three goals in a one-goal loss to No. 11 UCSB, along with the eventual game-winning goal in the fourth period against UC San Diego. For the week, Hill totaled nine goals, five steals (three vs. UCSD), four assists, four drawn exclusions, and two field blocks over five games in her hometown. This is the first career MPSF honor for Hill..
 
2020 COACHING CHANGES
During the offseason, UCLA women's water polo hired James Robinson as an assistant coach to replace Kodi Hill.

WRIGHT ON DECK
Adam Wright is in his third season as UCLA's head men's water polo coach in 2019 with an overall record of 51-16 (.761) and an MPSF mark of 6-5 (.545). On July 20, 2017, UCLA Director of Athletics, Dan Guerrero, announced that Wright will guide both the UCLA men's and women's water polo teams.
 
RECAPPING 2019
Overall Record: 24-7 | Final Ranking: 3rd | NCAA Finish: T-3rd | MPSF Tournament Finish: 3rd

UCLA advanced to the semifinal round of the NCAA Tournament in head coach Adam Wright's second season at the helm of the program. The Bruins' 13-7 win over No. 6 Michigan at Stanford secured their ninth consecutive appearance in the national semifinals. Junior Maddie Musselman secured ACWPC first team All-America acclaim for the third time in her career. Junior Bronte Halligan picked up second team acclaim while seniors Carlee Kapana and Lizette Rozeboom as well as freshman (now sophomore) Val Ayala were named honorable mention All-America selections. For the second straight season, a total of 12 Bruins claimed ACWPC All-Academic honors.

UCLA IN THE CWPA POLL
The Bruins slid three places this week to fifth in the 2020 CWPA National Women's Varsity Top 25 Poll (81 points), released on Jan. 22.
 

 2020 WOMEN'S VARSITY TOP 25 (WEEK ONE - JAN. 22)

 Rank  Team  2020 Preseason Poll  Points
 1  USC  1  99
 2  Stanford  2 (T)  96
 3  UC Irvine  5  92
 4  Hawai'i  6  87
 5  UCLA  2 (T)  81
 6  California  4  79
 7  Michigan  7  74
 8  UC San Diego  13  71
 9  UC Santa Barbara  11  70
 10  Arizona State  8  68
 11  Pacific  9  62
 12  UC Davis  10  57
 13  Fresno State  14  51
 14 (T)  Princeton  15 (T)  41
 14 (T)  Long Beach State  15 (T)  41
 16  Loyola Marymount  12  40
 17  Harvard  17  39
 18  San Jose State  18  32
 19  CSUN  22  26
 20  San Diego State  19  24
 21  Wagner  21  19
 22  Bucknell  20  18
 23  Indiana  23 (T)  10
 24 (T)  Marist  23 (T)  8
 24 (T)  Azusa Pacific  25  8
 RV  CBU  RV  2
 RV  Brown  NR  2
 RV  Santa Clara  NR  2
 RV  Cal State East Bay  RV  1
 RV  Pomona-Pitzer  NR  1
No. 4 UCLA vs. No. 3 Hawai'i Highlights
Monday, April 14
Highlights - UCLA W. Water Polo vs. Princeton (March 13, 2025)
Friday, March 14
UCLA vs. Princeton
Thursday, March 13
No. 4 UCLA vs. No. 15 Indiana
Sunday, March 09