LOS ANGELES, Calif. - A late goal by Luca Cupido helped the No. 3-ranked Cal men's water polo team force overtime but two goals in extra time by No. 1 UCLA proved the difference as the Bears fell 12-11 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Tournament championship match at USC.

Trailing 9-7 after three periods, Cal (23-6) fell behind by three when Gordon Marshall converted from two meters for UCLA with 5:51 to play. The Bears answered quickly to get back in the match, and goals by Odysseas Masmanidis and Colin Mulcahy pulled Cal within one at 10-9 with 4:11 to play.

Both teams traded defensive stops for the next few minutes, and Cal got the advantage it needed with just over a minute to play when an exclusion on Alex Roelse gave the Bears the power play. Cupido made a little space and fired left of UCLA goalkeeper Garrett Danner, beating the Bruins' standout keeper to tie the score with 52 seconds left. A steal by Johnny Hooper gave the Bears one last shot before the end of regulation but Danner came up with the save UCLA needed to force extra time.

UCLA (28-0) struck first, converting a power play opportunity late in the first overtime period to take the lead. Max Irving became the man on the spot, taking a shot from a narrow angle and firing just over Lazar Andric's outstretched fingers to put the Bruins up 11-10 with six seconds left in the first OT period.

A 6 on 4 opportunity helped UCLA score its second overtime goal, and Patrick Fellner found the net to make it 12-10 with 1:38 remaining. Cal narrowed the gap when Thomas Carroll scored a rapid-fire goal with 33 seconds left, and the Bears got one final chance when a UCLA foul at mid-tank gave Cal the ball back with five seconds left. Cupido's final shot was blocked and UCLA remained undefeated on the season.

Cupido tied Irving for match-high honors in scoring with three goals. Masmanidis and Mulcahy each scored two while Thomas Agramonte, Carroll, Hooper and Stellet each scored once for the Bears. Andric stopped 13 shots to finish with 47 in three matches at the tournament.

UCLA will earn the MPSF's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament but Cal should stand a good chance of joining the Bruins, who will host the tournament from Dec. 5-6, in Los Angeles in two weeks. The Bears are the only team to take UCLA to overtime this season and have lost to the Bruins by just one goal twice this year. Cal entered the week ranked No. 3 in the latest Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) poll but beat No. 2 Pacific on Saturday for the Bears' third win in four tries against the Tigers this season.