No. 3 UCLA is set to participate in the Triton Invitational at UC San Diego’s Canyonview Aquatic Center from January 30 to February 1. The Bruins, currently holding a 2-0 record, are seeded second among 16 teams and will compete in bracket B alongside No. 6 Arizona State, No. 18 Michigan, and Cal State Fullerton.
UCLA opens the tournament against Cal State Fullerton on Friday, January 30 at 9:20 a.m. PT. If victorious, the Bruins will play the winner of the Arizona State/Michigan match on Saturday morning in the quarterfinals. Semifinals are scheduled for Saturday evening, with the championship game set for Sunday afternoon.
There will be no live stream available for this event; however, scoring updates can be followed on UCLA’s Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) accounts.
This marks only the second meeting between UCLA and Cal State Fullerton. In their first encounter during the Barbara Kalbus Invitational on February 23, 2024, UCLA won decisively by a score of 18-6. Freshman Becca Melanson led with four goals and two assists, while junior Molly Renner scored a hat trick. Goalkeepers Lauren Steele and Sydney Chiang contributed to a strong defensive showing.
UCLA has historically dominated its other potential opponents as well. The Bruins lead Arizona State in their series history, having won 35 out of 37 meetings. Their most recent matchup resulted in a come-from-behind win for UCLA on February 9, 2025. Against Michigan, UCLA holds an undefeated record across thirty meetings.
The Bruins’ roster features six returning All-Americans for the upcoming season: Anna Pearson (First-Team), Lauren Steele and Emma Lineback (Second-Team), Bia Mantellato and Genoa Rossi (Honorable Mention), and Taylor Smith (Third-Team in 2023). Several players also received All-MPSF honors last year.
Three goalkeepers return this season: Lauren Steele, Izzy Rosensitto, and Joey Niz—all with prior experience defending the cage for UCLA.
An influx of youth includes six true freshmen joining three redshirt freshmen from last year’s class, bringing new talent to the team.
Additionally, three transfers have joined from within the MPSF: Janna Tauscher from California, Zoë Frangieh from Arizona State, and Fanni Muzsnay from USC.
Nine other returning players made significant contributions last season. Two players—Natasha Kieckhafer and Maile Turner—will redshirt due to injuries.
A change in coaching sees Adam Wright stepping away from daily operations as head coach of women’s water polo for this season. Jason Falitz and Matt Kubeck have been appointed interim Co-Head Coaches; both currently hold a record of 2-0 leading the team. Ryann Neushul joins as Assistant Coach after a decorated collegiate career at Stanford.
In review of last season, UCLA finished with an overall record of 20-6 (.769), including a conference mark of 5-1 (.833). The team entered postseason tournaments as top seed but lost to Stanford in overtime during the MPSF final and fell to USC in NCAA semifinals.
According to the latest CWPA National Women’s Varsity Top 25 Poll released January 28, UCLA remains ranked third nationally with 92 points.
