June 30, 2008

LOS ALAMITOS, Calif. - Former UCLA water polo players Adam Wright and Brandon Brooks (men's) and Jamie Hipp and Natalie Golda (women's) have been named to the United States national water polo team rosters and will compete in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China.

Wright and Brooks both represented the United States on the men's national team at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece. Golda helped lead the women's national team to the bronze medal at the 2004 Olympics. Hipp will make her first appearance in the Olympic Games this summer in Beijing.

The UCLA men's water polo program has been represented at 15 Olympics, including each of the last four Summer Olympics (since 1992). At least two former UCLA women's water polo players have been named to each U.S. Olympic roster since the sport's Olympic inception in 2000.

Wright, who helped lead the United States to the gold medal at the 2007 Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, was a four-year All-America selection (1997-2000) at UCLA. Wright, who ranks sixth in the Bruins' record books for career goals (138), led UCLA to consecutive NCAA titles in 1999 and 2000. He scored 46 goals and 39 goals, respectively, in each of those seasons.

Brooks, who currently serves as an assistant coach for the UCLA men's and women's water polo teams, was a four-year letterwinner for the Bruins (1999-2002) and three-time All-America selection (2000-2002). Brooks helped lead the men's team to NCAA championships in 1999 and 2000. His 700 career goalkeeper saves ranks first on UCLA's all-time saves list. Likewise, Brooks' 4.80 goals against average in 2000, his sophomore season, is the lowest mark among starting goalkeepers in program history.

Golda helped guide the women's team to three NCAA titles (2001, 2003 and 2005). A four-year letterwinner, Golda totaled 47 goals in 2005 before earning the prestigious Peter J. Cutino Award, honoring the nation's premier female and male collegiate water polo players. Golda's 158 career goals currently ranks fourth in program history. In 2004, Golda redshirted to play in the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, scoring two goals - one against Hungary and another against Australia - to lead Team USA to the bronze medal.

Hipp led the women's team to two national titles (2000, 2003). As a senior, she captured All-America honors after being named a second-team All-MPSF Tournament selection. Her total of 685 career saves ranks third-highest on the school's all-time list, and her 4.05 career goals against average is the second-lowest mark in program history. Hipp earned third-team ACWPC All-America honors in 2000, 2001 and 2002 and gained second-team accolades in 2003.