The shock chief of the ladies’s water polo pack on the quarter-mile mark are the Bruins of UCLA. Head Coach Adam Wright has solid an undefeated file by successful shut contests—UCLA has overwhelmed USC and Michigan by one—and blowing out lesser groups. General, the Bruins have outscored their opponents 239 to 83.
[Collegiate Water Polo Association 2022 Women’s Varsity Poll – Week 5 / February 23]
This isn’t to say Wright and his gamers ought to be comfy on the high; UCLA is the third staff this season to steer the Collegiate Water Polo Affiliation girls’s ballot; 5 weeks into play each USC and Cal have already been toppled. That development is prone to be examined this weekend on the annual Barbara Kalbus Invitational is staged at UC-Irvine. The massive story out of Irvine is the absence of #3 Cal, which skilled a COVID-19 outbreak necessitating the Golden Bears to skip what’s the greatest non-conference event of the ladies’s season.
[2022 Barbara Kalbus Invitational Tournament Page]
Irrespective of: 14 of the 15 contributors at Kalbus are ranked, together with eight of the High 10. The one absences are Cal and—surprisingly—#8 Fresno State. There might be no blood within the water this weekend on the Anteaters’ pool, but when UCLA and USC meet within the ultimate it can doubtless be a memorable match.
1) UCLA (17-0; 2-0 MPSF); Anybody who predicted the Bruins could be on high of the polls going into the Kalbus Invite ought to get to Draft Kings and wager on Tremendous Bowl 57. However the components has been basic UCLA; discover a devoted chief (two-time Olympian Maddie Musselman – 40 objectives, 20 assists—each staff highs) and blend that participant with a core of hyper-focused freshmen. Emma Lineback (27 objectives, 19 assists) and Molly Renner (21 and eight). Throw in spectacular play from senior Ava Johnson (20 objectives and 44 exclusions drawn) and large netminding by red-shirt junior Georgia Phillips (6.22 GAA with 178 saves). Can anybody say 2017? That’s when the Bruin males snuck in for an NCAA title in what was surmised to be a rebuilding 12 months. UCLA Beat UC-Davis and UC-San Diego Friday; on Saturday they face both Hawai’i or Michigan.
UCLA’s Ava Johnson has been a stabilizing drive for a younger Bruin aspect. Photograph Courtesy: Amy Dixon / Each day Bruin
2) USC (9-1; 1-0 MPSF); For those who don’t suppose the Trojans received’t go all out to win a third-straight Kalbus Invite—particularly if it consists of revenge in opposition to the Bruins for a one-goal defeat two weeks in the past in San Diego—you’ve missed the entire level of “Battle On” and USC pleasure. A giant win final weekend over MPSF rival Cal will do nothing to chill the fires of revenge for a Trojan program that has misplaced solely FIVE occasions in 4 years (in opposition to 70 wins)—and three of these losses are to UCLA. The (newest) highway to revenge opened with a win over Pomona-Pitzer, the Trojans face MPSF foe Arizona State Saturday.
3) Cal-Berkeley (11-1; 0-1 MPSF); There’s no query that the Golden Bears’ withdrawal from the Kalbus Invite resulting from COVID-19 is probably a big blow to what has been the most effective begin in Coralie Simmon’s six seasons in Berkeley. It’s potential to invest that the virus was partially accountable for Cal’s dismal efficiency final weekend at Uytengsu. Ruby Swadling, Rozanne Voorvelt and Shea Salvino (15 photographs) took greater than half of the Golden Bears’ makes an attempt on USC goalie Carolyne Stern; Olympians Kitty Lynn Joustra and Emma Wright took 4 (and hit on three of them). The hope is all of them get better shortly; subsequent week top-ranked UCLA is scheduled to go to Berkeley.
4) Stanford (8-1); The Cardinal have been off the previous two weeks and return to play in opposition to their final opponent, San Diego State, who they beat 19-4 on the tail finish of the Stanford Invitational. By sitting out the Triton Invitational, Head Coach John Tanner’s staff doubtless did what they do finest: work collectively. The proof was seen first in a return date in opposition to the Aztecs, who on Friday misplaced 20-6 to the Cardinal. Subsequent up Saturday are event hosts, UCI; it seems that Stanford is on a collision course with USC later in the present day.
5) Hawai’i (7-2); A two-goal loss to the Trojans two weeks in the past—balanced by an additional time win in opposition to Michigan to take third on the Triton Invite—ought to put the Rainbow Wahine in a superb mind set going into Kalbus competitors. Seemingly out of the battles on the high of the ballot, Head Coach Maureen Cole’s job is to steer her staff into place to beat UCI, Lengthy Seashore State and UC San Diego in Huge West play. It’s doubtless they’ll meet the 49ers on Sunday in a non-conference match-up, which might be ideally suited.
6) Michigan (8-5); It there’s any staff from outdoors of California that may problem the Huge 4—Cal, Stanford, UCLA, USC—it’s the Wolverines. Head Coach Marcelo Leonardi is aware of that to be the most effective you’ve bought to play the most effective; the Kalbus Invite, the place they opened Friday with a slender win over Huge 10 rival Indiana, is his staff’s third out of state event within the season’s first 5 weeks. Clearly, this may take time; the Wolverines’ 5 losses in 2022 have come in opposition to greater ranked opponents. The worm will flip when Michigan if can win one-goal video games in opposition to Hawai’i and UCLA, moderately than lose them.
7) UC-Irvine (10-3; 1-0); Internet hosting the Kalbus Invite for the previous 15 years, the Anteaters have by no means received their very own event. This 12 months might be no exception; they opened with a win in opposition to UC-Santa Barbara to attract Stanford on Saturday. In 24 makes an attempt UCI has by no means overwhelmed the Cardinal. Tara Prentice, again for one more season with the Anteaters, has not missed a beat, with staff highs in objectives (26) and exclusions drawn (31).
UC-Irvine’s Tara Prentice has been a difference-maker for the Anteaters. Photograph Courtesy: UC-Irvine Athletics
8) Fresno State (9-7); After 4 wins final weekend in their very own event, the Bulldogs will relaxation this weekend—and skip the Kalbus Invite. In actual fact, Head Coach Natalie Benson’s squad has by no means participated on this event, a curious scenario as a result of as a High-Ten staff it might appear an look would possibly confirm the Bulldogs’ standing among the many nation’s finest. As an alternative, FSU will face Santa Clara in a Golden Coast Convention match-up on Saturday.
9) Arizona State (6-7); After opening their season with 4 losses, the Solar Devils appeared to have righted their ship, with three straight wins. Then they open Kalbus play with a 7-5 loss to Lengthy Seashore State, ending their win streak. Now Head Coach Todd Clapper’s squad will face Pomona-Pitzer—and can end method again of the again in Irvine. Maybe that gradual begin was indicators of turbulent troubles in 2022.
10) UC-Davis (10-6); A sufferer of UCLA on Friday—a single win in 20 earlier conferences that got here in 1995—the Aggies rebounded to beat Huge West rival UC San Diego within the afternoon. An necessary—it’s the second this season over the Tritons and units UC-Davis up effectively in convention play. What might be even higher is that if the event chips fall in order that they face Hawai’i tomorrow; the Aggies have each UCSD and the Rainbow Wahine on their Huge West schedule subsequent month.
11) UC-San Diego (8-6); The Tritons have already misplaced twice to UCLA; first time by 5 objectives, the second by seven. Their match later in the present day was a take a look at as as to whether they’re in any respect closing the hole between the 2 staff (or not). They’re not; after a troublesome loss to UC-Davis, UCSD misplaced by 9 to UCLA. For Saturday there’s favorable match-up with UC-Santa Barbara.
12) San Jose State (9-8); For those who’ve ever acquired a recreation report from Lawrence Fan, the Spartans’ Affiliate Athletic Director and SID for males’s and girls’s polo, you might be certainly lucky. One of many nicest SIDs—he begins his recaps with: “Expensive Girls and Gents,” Fan is extremely by way of and well mannered. However not the SJSU staff; they’re combating robust this 12 months, with two wins and two robust losses final weekend on the Fresno State Match, together with a 12-9 defeat on the hand of the host Bulldogs. This weekend the Spartans are on the highway at Cal State East Bay; then MPSF play begins with Arizona State visiting San Jose on March 5.
[SJSU Legend Lawrence Fan Passes Away]
13) Lengthy Seashore State (8-7); The Seashore has been on a curler coaster up to now in 2022. Three straight wins to open their season, adopted by 4 straight losses, then a win, a loss, three extra wins and a loss final weekend to FSU to shut out their keep on the Fresno Invite. LBS opened with an enormous win over Arizona State, maybe the beginning of one other run for Head Coach Gavin Arroyo’s squad? Really, it put them in a match on Saturday with USC, in order that win streak must wait.
Abbey Simshauser has helped lead Wagner to it’s finest begin in program historical past. Photograph Courtesy: Wagner Athletics
14) Wagner (10-2); The Seahawks are off to their finest begin in program historical past. They’ve scored a file 202 objectives in these 12 video games, together with 29 in opposition to Siena and 25 in opposition to Gannon, Mercyhurst and VMI. Abbey Simshauser had 33 objectives, Sofia Diaz Alvarez has 30 and Andrea Arias has 29. Driving an 8-match win streak; one would possibly marvel if—after a 12 months off due to COVID—if anybody can cease the Seahawks. MAAC rivals LaSalle and St. Francis Brooklyn are subsequent up, in the present day on the Marist Invitational.
15) UC-Santa Barbara (9-5); Behind the spectacular play of Caitlyn Snyder (25 objectives, 32 assists) and Nina Munson (26 objectives and 14 assists), the Gauchos have thrived. Snyder is a red-shirt junior and has been a stabilizing drive after a roster turnover from final season. Munson is a freshman, one in all 17 first-year gamers on Head Coach Serela Kay’s squad. There are solely 5 higher classmen on the UCSB roster—and one, senior Amanda Legaspi, has not performed a minute—making this 12 months an nearly whole rebuild. A loss Friday to UC Irvine places the Gauchos into a good match Saturday in opposition to San Diego State.
16) Pacific (3-6); The Tigers dropped a call to Brown final week; Pacific has its worst early season file since 2020, the season cancelled resulting from COVID. Earlier than that, Head Coach James Graham’s squad was 3-7 in 2016—and nonetheless made it to the GCC ultimate that 12 months, the place the Tigers misplaced by a purpose to San Diego State. Will this Pacific staff, with 16 higher classmen, together with seven graduate college students and two seniors, flip issues round? Subsequent match: UC Davis subsequent Friday.
17) Indiana (5-7; 0-1 MPSF); With a loss Friday to Huge 10 rival Michigan on the primary day of the Kalbus Invite, Head Coach Taylor Dodd’s squad has dropped four-straight matches. Of these losses, all however one has been to groups ranked greater within the polls than the Hoosiers. A match-up Saturday with Loyola Marymount turns into vital; can Indiana win the matches they’re favored in? Subsequent weekend they’re in Cambridge for the Harvard Invite in opposition to groups—the host Crimson, Brown, Cal Lutheran and Wagner—maybe extra suitable with their expertise. Besides their convention is the MPSF, residence to the nation’s finest.
18) Loyola Marymount (4-6); A 20-5 loss Friday to Hawai’i could look unhealthy on the scoresheet however means completely nothing by way of the Lion’s NCAA hopes. In actual fact, outdoors of Fresno State, the GCC appears extensive open, with solely the Bulldogs and Pacific ranked greater than LMU. With all his foreign-born athletes again after a COVID break—together with Marialena Seletopoulou from Greece and Kelsey Snelgar from New Zealand—Head Coach Kyle Witt ought to have sufficient offense. Exterior of one-sided losses to Arizona State and now Hawai’i, LMU has been in each match—a superb signal going into GCC play, which begins March 19 in opposition to San Diego State.
19) Harvard (9-1); The Crimson have gotten off to the most effective begin in program historical past, with a seven-match win streak and junior goalie Zoe Banks taking part in extraordinarily effectively. Harvard ought to win handily this weekend in opposition to a trio of CWPA foes—St. Francis, Mount St. Mary’s and Bucknell. Query is, how effectively ready will Head Coach Ted Minnis’ staff be once they face Michigan on April 2 down at Princeton? The Wolverines are (by far) the category of the convention—and due to this fact the staff to beat if the Crimson wish to qualify for his or her first-ever NCAA event (in addition to internet hosting in 2013).
Princeton’s Kayla Yalensky has been a standout performer for the Tigers this season. Photograph Courtesy: Princeton Athletics
20) Princeton (10-2; 3-0 CWPA); With a 22-8 win yesterday over Mount St. Mary’s, the Tigers have stretched their successful streak to eight, and have already got three wins in convention play. Derek Ellingson, the Princeton head coach, has the identical drawback as Minnis at Harvard: there’s just one staff that they need to beat: Michigan. However there’s additionally pleasure; the Tigers like to torment Ivy League rivals, and Brown is on the docket for tomorrow in Lewisburg, PA. As is St. Francis College—a 10-3 sufferer two weeks in the past in New Jersey. At the moment they’ll face host Bucknell; maybe telling is that Princeton will NOT attend subsequent weekend’s Harvard Invite, selecting to take one other journey out West for extra seasoning. After tomorrow’s SFU match, the Tigers play seven-straight West Coast opponents.
21) San Diego State (1-6); A season delayed by COVID—the Aztecs had been scheduled to open final month in lovely Hawai’i—has changed into a really robust begin for Head Coach Carin Crawford. A 20-6 loss Friday to Stanford places her staff in a match-up with UC-Santa Barbara. Appears to be like like Crawford’s senior-laden squad, which incorporates Lucia Carballo, Zoe Morgan, Raquel de Pinho and Spencer Samuel, must dig deep for wins.
22) LIU (7-4); The Sharks would possibly seem like one-dimensional; as goes Paolo Dominguez, so goes LIU. Yesterday on the Tina Finali Invitational, Dominguez—the Sharks’ main scorer with 39 objectives, poured in 13 objectives in two video games. That is the third time this season the junior from Hialeah, Florida has registered double digits in objectives on a single day. Nonetheless, for Head Coach Gabby Juarez’s staff to beat Marist and Wagner in MAAC play, they’ll want Elena Camerena, Jeannet Garcia, Kate Hinrich and others to contribute.
[California Trip Crucial to LIU Women’s Water Polo Title Hopes]
23) California State-Northridge (5-4); The Matadors (wow, WHAT a mascot!) have thrived in opposition to lesser opponents whereas knocking off opponents ranked above them—notably Marist and San Diego State. They’ve already picked up two wins on the Finali Invite and have a winnable recreation Saturday morning in opposition to Cal State Monterey Bay. A Saturday afternoon assembly in Thousand Oaks in opposition to LIU ought to be a helpful measuring stick for each packages.
24) Brown (9-5); A win final week in opposition to #16 Pacific in Santa Clara was big for Head Coach Felix Mercado’s staff. Not solely did it cap off a 4-0 weekend for his staff, however the Bears additionally beat a ranked opponent for the primary time since 2019. They’ll look to maintain that momentum going this weekend at Bucknell, with matches in opposition to CWPA opponents St. Francis College, the host Bison and Ivy League rival Princeton.
25) Marist (7-7); After a gradual begin, the Crimson Foxes have received 5 of their final six; the one blemish being a loss to Pacific. An itinerant staff—Head Coach Chris Vidale will take his staff on 4 Western swings this season—Marist is at residence this weekend for its personal event. The Courtney Fischer Invite is known as for Fischer, who in 2016 was tragically killed following her freshman 12 months. Definitely, the reminiscence of a fallen teammate will encourage Vidale’s athletes; that and two beatable opponents—Mercyhurst and MAAC rival St. Francis Brooklyn—ought to make for an gratifying keep in Poughkeepsie.
