LOS ANGELES – On the latter of back-to-back days with action, the UC Davis men's water polo team put up a great fight with a strong defensive effort early, but ultimately fell to No. 1 UCLA, 10-9, Saturday afternoon at Spieker Aquatics Center in Los Angeles, Calif.
 
"We had an outstanding effort against the top team in the country today," head coach Daniel Leyson said. "Once again, we learned that games like this come down to a handful of crucial plays that we did not convert. I'm proud of our effort today."
 
The Aggies drop to 12-7 overall on the season while the Bruins improve to 19-1.
 
In the defensive challenge against the top-ranked team in the country, junior utility Aleix Aznar Beltran was a spark on offense with a game- and season-high four goals on the day, marking his fifth hat trick of the season. Redshirt sophomore utility Tyler Mrkaich also netted a pair of goals on seven shots for his fifth straight multi-goal performance.
 
Redshirt junior goalkeeper Aaron Wilson earned the start in the net, making five saves in a pivotal performance early on to keep the Aggies within reach all match.
 
UC Davis and UCLA's offenses both started out of the gates slowly while the defenses fended off chances early. UCLA's Jack Larsen scored the only goal of the opening frame with 2:22 left on the clock.
 
The second period saw the Aggies get on the board courtesy of a power-play goal by senior attacker Connor Norton, however the Bruins carried a 2-1 lead into halftime.
 
To begin the third quarter, Beltran found the back of the net twice to give the Aggies their first lead of the match, 3-2. The Bruins responded with three more goals while the Aggies could get just one, making it a 5-4 UCLA lead into the fourth quarter.
 
The Aggies were able to quickly tie it up, 5-5, on a power-play strike by redshirt sophomore attacker Colin Nicholls. However, UCLA countered with their offense waking up late, scoring five more times. The Aggies were able get within one thanks to Beltran's fourth of the day, but the Bruins held their ground, ultimately winning by a score of 10-9.
 
The Aggies return home to host Santa Clara on Thursday, Oct. 27 at 2 pm PT.