COLLEGE SCENE : This Bruin Making the Grade

Less than half an hour after holding fourth-ranked California to only two goals for the second time in a week Saturday, UCLA goalie Parsa Bonderson didn’t want to talk about water polo. But he was a singing canary when it came to his favorite subject, physics.

Bonderson is UCLA’s best example of a student-athlete. Carrying a double major in physics and math-applied science, he has a 3.946 grade-point average, tops among Bruin athletes.

And although he was replaced in the lineup before Sunday’s 9-3 victory over UC Santa Barbara, and possibly lost for the season because of a torn ligament in his elbow, his 4.69 goals-against average is among the reasons UCLA is ranked second in the nation and is in contention for a national title.

But Bonderson knows his future is in the classroom.

“This is it for me in water polo,” he said. “Even in high school, I wasn’t sure if I would play in college. Physics is what I want to do, go to grad school.”

Whatever his future, Bonderson is pretty sure physics will take him there.

One of the things that intrigues him is finding a way to make things travel faster than the speed of light, or, outrun time.

“Theoretically, time travel is possible,” he said. “That’s what relativity is all about.

“But I’m more interested in how to get something from one point to another faster than the speed of light.”

Bonderson is a two-time Academic All-American, a valedictorian candidate and the top scholar on a team that has had the highest GPA among UCLA men’s teams the last four years.

“I like the fact that the guys take school seriously,” said Guy Baker, one of the team’s co-coaches. “We know that once [a player’s collegiate playing career] is over, the degree is what we’re really her for.”

Adam Krikorian, the other coach, said: “Guy has a 100% rule. Everything you do, you do 100%. Water polo 100%. Social life 100%. School 100%.”

And the players’ success in the classroom has carried over to the pool.

“It makes it easier on us as coaches,” Krikorian said. “Intelligent players are more coachable. You don’t have to tell them the same things repeatedly.”

But Bonderson’s success in the classroom has also been a rich source for ribbing by teammates.

“Sometimes he’ll let a goal go in and say the wind got it, and we’ll say, ‘What do you mean, the wind? You should see the trajectory and know how to adjust for that,’ ” Krikorian said.

Bonderson said, “They say things and tease me sometimes, but I know it’s all in fun.”

And that’s why, regardless whether Bonderson will have surgery and miss the rest of his senior season or try to return despite the pain, Baker said he will continue to be part of the team.

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Ninth-ranked Pepperdine set a team record by scoring four two-point goals in a 9-6 victory over 10th-ranked UC Santa Barbara on Saturday.

Seventh-ranked USC’s Isabelle Harvey became the first women’s soccer player in school history to reach 100 points when she had two assists in a 4-0 victory over Washington State on Sunday, the team’s fifth consecutive victory. . . . Tracey Milburn scored with 25 seconds remaining in regulation as the No. 15 UCLA women tied Washington State, 3-3, on Sunday. . . . Sounding more like something out of AYSO than the NCAA, only two officials showed for Sunday’s women’s soccer match between Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount, causing the game to be postponed to Monday, when the Lions won, 2-1. Three officials are required.

Loyola Marymount’s Sarah McFarland broke her school record of 480 kills in a season with 21 Saturday. The nation’s leader in kills per game at 7.86 now has 487. . . . Both the UCLA and Pepperdine women’s volleyball teams kept rolling over the weekend, remaining undefeated in conference play. The Bruins, winners of 15 in a row, are 9-0 in the Pac-10. The Waves are 5-0 in the West Coast Conference. . . . In men’s soccer, fourth-ranked UCLA’s McKinley Tennyson Jr. tied the school record shared by Joe-Max Moore and Billy Thompson by scoring a goal in a fifth consecutive game Sunday against New Mexico.

USC’s Anna Lopaciuch won the Triton Cross-Country Invitational on Saturday at UC San Diego with a time of 17 minutes 51 seconds. Cal State Dominguez Hills’ Araceli Martinez finished fourth at 18:19. In the men’s race, Long Beach State’s Johann Appell finished eighth, matching his team’s finish. . . . The UCLA women’s cross-country team finished 10th and the men 25th at the pre-NCAA meet Saturday at Bloomington, Ind., site of next month’s NCAA championships.

COLLEGE DIVISION

Trevor Mutch of Claremont-Mudd-Scripps scored four goals Friday as the Stags defeated Caltech, 6-1. He has 17 goals, tops in the conference. . . . The Cal Lutheran women’s volleyball team upset Juniata of Pennsylvania, the fifth-ranked team in the nation, in five games Sunday.

The Cal State Dominguez Hills women’s soccer team defeated Cal State Bakersfield on Friday, 2-1, for its seventh consecutive victory, and moved ahead of the Roadrunners into second place in the California Collegiate Athletic Assn., half a game behind Cal Poly Pomona. . . . Friday was also a big day for Toro men’s goalkeeper Garrett Estrin. Shortly after shutting out Bakersfield, 2-0, he proposed to girlfriend Helen Lotosquin, who accepted.

Cal Lutheran running back Dorian Stitt had 165 yards and two touchdowns in only 12 carries as the Kingsmen defeated Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, 31-21, Saturday night. . . . Claremont-Mudd-Scripps won both the men’s and women’s cross-country races at the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference dual meet Saturday at La Mirada Park. Pomona-Pitzer had both individual winners, however, Anastasia Finnegan in the women’s race, Adam Boardman in the men’s.

Best of the Week

* WOMEN’S SOCCER

Santa Clara at Loyola Marymount, Friday, 3 p.m.

The improved Lions, who were closing in on the top 25 before a loss at No. 25 San Diego on Friday, will have a chance to make major noise as they play host the nation’s top-ranked team.

USC at Stanford, Sunday, 1 p.m.

The No. 7 Trojans and No. 10 Cardinal are the only 4-0 teams in the Pacific 10 and, with only five matches remaining, this could determine the conference winner.

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo at Long Beach State, Friday, 3 p.m.

The 49ers, in only their second season, can play spoiler against the Mustangs, who are a point out of first place in the Big West.

Biola at Westmont, today, 3 p.m.

Unranked Biola is in second place, a game behind No. 3 Westmont, which knocked off defending national champion Azusa Pacific last week.

La Verne at Cal Lutheran, Saturday, 11 a.m.

Trailing Cal Lutheran by a game heading into the final two weeks of the season, La Verne has to win this one or the conference title is the Regals’.

* MEN’S SOCCER

Redlands at Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, Saturday, 11 a.m.

These teams have tied once and are tied for first place at 7-0-1. The winner of this wins the conference championship.

* MEN’S WATER POLO

Stanford at USC, Saturday, 10 a.m.

The top-ranked Trojans and the Cardinal play for the third time this season in their tight rivalry. The last four matches have gone to overtime, the teams splitting, among them USC’s victory in last year’s national championship match.

UCLA at Pepperdine, Saturday, noon

The No. 2 Bruins hope to continue their roll and remain unbeaten in Mountain Pacific Sports Federation play against the team that ended their season in the conference tournament a year ago.

* CROSS-COUNTRY

CCAA men’s and women’s championships at UC Riverside, Saturday, 10 a.m.