BERKELEY, Calif. – No. 1 UCLA men’s water polo dropped a 14-12 decision to No. 3 California in MPSF play Saturday afternoon at Spieker Aquatics Complex. The Bruins trimmed a four-goal second-half deficit to one, but were unable to pull level.
Ryder Dodd collected three goals, three assists, two steals and two earned exclusions to lead the Bruins (17-2, 2-2 MPSF). Scoring two times each for UCLA were Frederico Jucá Carsalade and Ben Liechty, while Griffen Price turned away nine shots in the cage. The Golden Bears (13-4, 2-2), who beat then-No. 1 Stanford on Oct. 17, got hat tricks from Beso Akhvlediani and Maddox Arlett and 14 saves from Aran Pina.
Dodd gave the Bruins their only lead of the game with a six-on-five goal at 7:14 of the opening quarter. Price knocked away five shots in the first eight minutes, but let two through for a lead Cal did not relinquish.
The Golden Bears went up by three goals three times – at 4-1, 5-2 and 6-3 – in the second quarter. Bode Brinkema and Luka Gladović kept UCLA in striking distance with goals and Jucá Carsalade notched a counter-attack buzzer beater to make the halftime score 6-4.
Cal came out firing in the second half, scoring three of the first four goals for a 9-5 lead. Marcell Szécsi registered the only Bruin tally during that stretch. Following a UCLA timeout at 3:26, Liechty and Jucá Carsalade had successful efforts to put the Bruin deficit back at two. Akhvlediani’s answer with 1:54 left made the Golden Bear lead 10-7, where it stayed after three.
Liechty and Dodd scored back-to-back goals to start the fourth quarter. Over a subsequent one-minute stretch, Cal’s Kai Inoue and Arlett sandwiched two goals around one by Dodd. UCLA’s Ben Larsen made it a one-goal game once more at 2:13. The Golden Bears immediately responded with a goal by Ilias Angelopoulos and later got another from Patrik Kolak. A late strike by Chase McFarland of the Bruins was too little, too late.
UCLA will try to bounce back Sunday, when it visits No. 2 Stanford for another conference clash. Opening sprint from Avery Aquatic Center is scheduled for 1 p.m. PT on Overnght.
No. 3 California 14, No. 1 UCLA 12
|
SCOREBOARD |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
FINAL |
|
No. 1 UCLA |
1 |
3 |
3 |
5 |
12 |
|
No. 3 California |
2 |
4 |
4 |
4 |
14 |
6x5: UCLA 1/12, California 3/7
Penalties: UCLA 0/0, USC 0/0
UCLA Goals: Dodd 3, Jucá Carsalade 2, Liechty 2, Brinkema 1, Gladović 1, Larsen 1, McFarland 1, Szécsi 1
UCLA Saves: Price 9
California Goals: Akhvlediani 3, Arlett 3, Angelopoulos 2, Kolak 2, Oprea 2, Inoue 1, Perrone 1
California Saves: Pina 14