Taylor Smith Season 2026

UCLA CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
• 2-time ACWPC All-America selection (First Team - 2026, Third Team - 2024)
• 2-time All-MPSF honoree (Second Team - 2026, 2024)
• MPSF All-Newcomer Team member (2023)
• NCAA All-Tournament Team member (Second Team - 2026)
• 3-time MPSF Player of the Week (last Feb. 3, 2026)
• 2-time MPSF Newcomer of the Week (last April 18, 2023)
• ACWPC All-Academic Team member (Excellent - 2023)
• 3-time MPSF All-Academic Team member (2024-26)
• 2-time Big Ten Spring Academic Honor Roll member (2026, 2025)
• 9-time Athletic Director's Honor Roll member (last Spring 2026)

2026
Played in all 26 games … totaled 73 goals on 155 shot attempts (47.1%) … logged team highs in goals, field blocks (12) and total points (104) … also ranked among team leaders in assists (second, 31) and steals (fifth, 15) … earned spot on ACWPC All-America First Team … made All-MPSF Second Team … voted onto NCAA Championship All-Tournament Second Team after posting eight goals and two assists across two games … member of MPSF All-Academic Team … earned spot on Big Ten Spring Academic Honor Roll ... named MPSF Player of the Week (Feb. 3) after totaling 16 points – including 15 goals – during four-game run to Triton Invitational championship … recorded 23 multi-goal games, including 14 hat tricks … scored in 25 games … scored four goals – including game winner with 1:46 remaining in second, sudden-victory overtime period – to help earn 19-18 win at No. 4 California; also scored twice in fourth quarter, with second effort at 28-second mark the final goal of regulation (Feb. 21) … posted game- and season-high four assists in 15-10 win against No. 12 UC Irvine (Feb. 7) … logged game-high five goals to help earn 12-9 win versus No. 2 USC in Triton Invitational final (Feb. 1) … tallied game- and season-high six goals to help collect 15-8 victory against No. 6 Arizona State in Triton Invitational quarterfinal round (Jan. 31) … named to Athletic Director’s Honor Roll for Fall 2025, Winter 2026 and Spring 2026.

2025
Played in all 26 games … recorded 62 total points (fourth on the team) … collected 40 goals (fourth on the team) and 22 assists (third on the team) … had 23 steals (second on the team), drew 10 exclusions (tied for fifth on the team), and tallied eight field blocks (tied for third on the team)… notched a season-high four goals four times (in a win at No. 6 UC Irvine on Feb. 22, in back-to-back MPSF home wins over No. 5 California on March 8 and No. 15 Indiana on March 9, and in the MPSF semifinal win over No. 4 California on April 26) … scored at least one goal in 18-of-26 games … went 9-10 in sprints on the year … had a season-best 10 consecutive games with at least one goal scored (March 31 thru April 26) … tallied 12 multi-goal games, including six hat tricks ... named to Athletic Director's Honor Roll for Winter 2025, Spring 2025. 

2024
Played in all 26 games …  had 35 goals (third on the team) and 18 assists (sixth on the team) … totaled 53 points on the season (ranked third on the team) … went 6-for-11 in sprints on the year … drew eight exclusions (ranked eighth on the team), had 15 steals (ranked fifth on the team), and recorded six field blocks (third on the team) … scored at least one goal in 18-of-26 games … notched a career-high five goals in a win vs. No. 7 Arizona State on Feb. 17 … collected a season-best four consecutive games with at least one goal scored twice on the season … had 11 multiple-goal games, including one five-goal game and three hat tricks ... named to Athletic Director's Honor Roll for Fall 2023.

2023
Played in 29-of-29 games … tallied 30 goals (seventh on the team) and 19 assists (fourth on the team) for a total of 49 points (fifth on the team) … also drew three exclusions, had 24 steals (tied for the lead on the team), and two field blocks … went 1-5 on sprints on the year … scored a season-high and career-high four goals in the win vs. No. 21 San Diego State at the UCSB Winter Invitational (Jan. 21) … had eight multiple-goal games, including four hat tricks … scored at least one goal in four consecutive games twice on the season … scored at least one goal in 17-of-29 games played ... named to Athletic Director's Honor Roll for Fall 2022, Winter 2023 and Spring 2023.

HIGH SCHOOL/CLUB
Four-year letter winner in both swimming and water polo at Newport Harbor High School … for water polo, earned first-team All CIF-SS Division I in 2019 and 2020 … 2019 Orange County Dream Team … 2020 All-Orange County first team … Sunset League first-team honors in 2021 and 2020 … for swimming, named All-America in 2019 as part of the 4x400 and 4x200 free relays … 2021 Sunset League champion in the 100 free … played club with Newport Beach Water Polo … named to the 2021 Junior Olympic All-America first team and the 2020 SoCal Championships All-Tournament Team … member of the U.S. Youth National Team, traveling to Budapest, Hungary in 2019 and to Athens, Greece, in 2020 … member of the U.S. Junior training team.
 
PERSONAL
Full name: Taylor Cole Smith … born in Newport Beach, Calif. … parents are Trent and Kristin Smith … has two younger brothers, Trent Jr. and Troy … athlete she admires most is professional surfer Bethany Hamilton … enjoys surfing, boating, painting, and spending time at the beach … both brothers play water polo at Newport Harbor High School … father, Trent, played water polo at USC … wants to go in to medicine … major is psychobiology.