Friday, September 12
Los Angeles, Calif.
12:00 PM (PT)
UCLA
8-0
13
vs
7
UC Irvine
6-1
1
2
3
4
OT
OT
SD
SD
SD
SD
SD
F
UC Irvine
0
4
1
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
7
UCLA (M)
3
2
5
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
13
Redshirt sophomore Max Matthews scored the first hat trick of his career in the win over Harvard (photo by Dylan Petrossian).
Photo by: UCLA Athletics
No. 1 UCLA Opens Home Slate with Two Big Wins
September 12, 2025 | Men's Water Polo
LOS ANGELES --ย No. 1 UCLA (9-0) opened up its 2025 home slate with a pair of lopsided victoriesย on Friday at Dirks Pool at Spieker Aquatics Center. The Bruins opened with a 13-7 win over No. 8 UC Irvine and then completed the day with a 21-10 victory over (RV) Harvard. The Bruins improved to 4-0 all-time against the Harvard Crimson and to 94-60-1ย against the UC Irvine Anteaters.
UCLA scored a season-low 13 goals against the Anteaters and had seven different players score. The Bruins haveย now reached double-digit scorers in eight of nine games (13 vs. Navy, 10 vs. UC Davis, 11 at UC San Diego, 10 vs. California Baptist University, 11 vs. George Washington, 10 vs. Fordham, 15 vs. Bucknell, and 11 vs. Harvard).
In the win over UC Irvine (6-1), junior Ben Liechtyย paced the Bruins' offense with four total points (one goal and three assists). Senior Gray Carson and sophomore Ryder Dodd, each scored a hat trick to lead the goal-scoring effort against the Anteaters, It marked the first hat trick of the year for Carson and the third four Ryder Dodd.
Redshirt sophomore Nate Tauscher got the starting nod and went the distance, registering nine saves, twoย steals, and one assist while allowing seven goals.
The Bruins scored the first four goals of the game and never trailed, winning the first quarter, 3-0. UCI won the second period, 4-2,ย to trim the Bruins' lead to 5-4 at halftime. But the Bruins responded in a dominant way, winning the third period, 5-1, to double-up the Anteaters, 10-5, heading into the final stanza. UCLA won the fourth period, 3-2, to provide the 13-7 final.
In the game against the Crimson (4-4), sophomoreย Ryder Dodd paced the Bruins' offense with a game-high six total points on a game-high five goals to go with one assist. Redshirt sophomore Max Matthews (first of his collegiate career) and junior Ben Liechty (fourth of the season) each scored hat tricks for the Bruins.
Tauscher made his ninth start on the year, registering one save while giving up four goals in the first half. Redshirt freshman Joey Kentย played the third period in goal and tallied five saves while allowing one score. Redshirt freshman Nick Tovani finished the game in the cage, registering three stops and one assist while surrendering three goals in the fourth quarter.
UCLA scored the first six goals of the game and led 7-1 at the end of the first period. The Bruins won the second quarter, 5-3, to take a 12-4 lead into the break. Another 5-3 win in the third quarter for UCLA stretched the Bruins' lead to 17-7 entering the final frame. UCLA won the fourth period, 4-3, to provide the 21-10ย final.
Up Next: The Bruins host No. 12 Pepperdineย tomorrow at 3:00 p.m. PT at Dirks Pool at Spieker Aquatics Center.
No. 8 UC Irvine at No. 1 UCLA (Dirks Pool at Spieker Aquatics Centerย - Game 8)
| SCOREBOARD | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | FINAL |
| No. 8 UC Irvine | 0 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 7 |
| No. 1 UCLA | 3 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 13 |
6x5 -ย UCLA - 6/15 - UCI - 2/8
Penalties -ย UCLA - 1/1 - UCIย - 2/2
UCI Saves:ย Zayd Mahmoud 10
UCLA Goals:ย Gray Carson 3, Ryder Dodd 3, Wade Sherlock 2, Noah Rowe 2, Ben Larsen 1, Ben Liechty 1, Chase Dodd 1
UCLA Saves:ย Nate Tauscher 9
ย
| SCOREBOARD | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | FINAL |
| (RV) Harvard | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 10 |
| No. 1 UCLA | 7 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 21 |
6x5 -ย UCLA - 5/10 - HAR - 1/6
Penalties -ย UCLA - 2/2ย - HAR - 0/1
HAR Goals:ย Lukas Peabody 4, Flexis Pal 2, Emil Sogaard-Shrikrishnan 2, Jack Burghardt 1,ย Mason Huntย 1
HAR Saves:ย Tanner Furtak 7
UCLA Goals:ย Ryder Dodd 5, Max Matthews 3, Ben Liechty 3, Chase Dodd 2, Vinnie Merk 2, Eli Liechty 1, Wade Sherlock 1, Noah Rowe 1, Bode Brinkema 1, Jackson Harlan 1, Trey Doten 1
UCLA Saves:ย Joey Kent 5, Nick Tovani 3, Nate Tauscher 1
Team Stats
UC
UCL
Shots
25
33
Goals
7
13
Assists
4
12
Points
11
25
Exclusions
15
8
Steals
3
6
Sprints
1
3
1
Noah Rowe
04:10
Gray Carson
01:35
Wade Sherlock
00:02
2
Chase Dodd
06:58
Jasper Dale
06:31
Luka Kristic
03:38
Johann Thrall
02:29
Ben Liechty
01:29
Johann Thrall
00:06
3
Wade Sherlock
07:20
Gray Carson
05:10
Luka Kristic
04:31
Noah Rowe
02:37
Ryder Dodd
01:05
Ryder Dodd
00:25
4
Jackson Stevens
05:32
Ryder Dodd
04:34
Gray Carson
02:40
Ben Larsen
01:25
Alex Lopez
00:51
Game Leaders
Players
Shots
9
Goals
3
Assists
0
Points
3
Shots
5
Goals
3
Assists
0
Points
3
Shots
4
Goals
2
Assists
0
Points
2
Shots
4
Goals
1
Assists
0
Points
1
Players Mentioned
UTL
/ Men's Water Polo
UTL
/ Men's Water Polo
ATK
/ Men's Water Polo
ATK
/ Men's Water Polo
ATK
/ Men's Water Polo
ATK
/ Men's Water Polo
UTL
/ Men's Water Polo
UTL
/ Men's Water Polo
CTR
/ Men's Water Polo
DEF
/ Men's Water Polo
ATK
/ Men's Water Polo
ATK
/ Men's Water Polo
GK
/ Men's Water Polo
GK
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