Amid the rush of final exams, the Hawaii water polo team spent the week preparing for the most rigorous test of the season.

The Big West champion Rainbow Wahine departed for Los Angeles on Monday in advance of the program’s seventh appearance in the NCAA tournament with some of the players also prepping for exams to end the spring semester.

But experience is an effective teacher, and the team’s trip two years ago provided a template for balancing the academic and athletic demands of playing into the final week of the NCAA schedule.

“I think that is the biggest takeaway from a couple years ago to now and I think the girls that have done it before really relayed that on,” coach Maureen Cole said. “So they’ve done a really good job at practice and taking care of their school, while simultaneously be able to prepare, which is awesome.”

As for their work in the water, the time for preparation ends today when the Rainbow Wahine (11-1) face third-seeded tournament host UCLA (13-4) in a quarterfinal match at the Spieker Aquatics Complex. The match is set for 3 p.m. and will be streamed on ncaa.com.

The winner advances to Saturday’s 2 p.m. semifinal against second-seeded Stanford or Fresno State, which defeated Cal Lutheran in a first-round match on Wednesday.

The other side of the bracket features No. 1 seed USC taking on Marist and No. 4 Arizona State facing Michigan. The championship match is set for noon on Sunday.

After losing their season opener at UC San Diego on March 10, the Wahine have run off 11 consecutive victories and captured the program’s fourth Big West championship since 2013 with a 9-8 comeback victory over UC Irvine on May 2, also in San Diego.

“I think we’ve taken advantage of every game, gotten better each time,” Cole said. “Girls are playing better and better together, making their reads in the water with each other better and communicating better and (doing) what needs to be done at each certain moment.”

Freshman Lucia Gomes de la Puente scored 12 goals in 2020 and returned as a catalyst for the Wahine offense with 21 goals and 20 assists this season. Lara Luka, another second-year freshman, is next on the scoring list with 17 goals, followed by true freshman Lot Stertefeld with 13 goals and 16 assists.

Junior Carmen Baringo leads the Wahine with 27 steals, the last three coming late in the Big West final after a goal by junior center Lalelei Mata’afa gave UH its lone lead of the title match.

UH was 11-2 when the remainder of the 2020 season was canceled and a 10-5 loss to UCLA on Feb. 23 would mark the end of the season for the Wahine.

UCLA holds a 53-3 advantage in the series with UH, including two wins in the NCAA tournament in 2006 and 2013.

“We talked about having a chip on our shoulder just always trying to prove ourselves,” Cole said. “We still kind of are fighting for this respect from everyone and it just kind of leads into, ‘We’re in their house. It doesn’t matter. It’s just an opportunity to do something great.”

In another year, UH and UCLA likely would have likely met earlier this season. But with scheduling confined within conferences, scouting has been limited to video review. “But it’s not the same as having this group of girls do live reps (against the Bruins),” said Cole, a UCLA alumna.

“But we’re doing our best and we’re watching all the video that we’ve been able to get our hands on and we were fortunate enough to play them.”

Cole said the Bruins’ depth will be among the biggest challenges the Wahine will face. Then again, facing a deeper UC Irvine team in the Big West final “we were hammering in the fourth quarter and were fine,” Cole said. “So I think that we’re fit enough to play the game with the team that we have.”

Cole expressed admiration for the way the Wahine have handled the various obstacles inherent in playing a season amid a pandemic, even down to a player suffering a broken nose in practice earlier this week.

“Water polo tough,” Cole said of the player. “She got to the hospital, they broke it back in place and she’ll be playing with a face mask. So she’s good to go.”

NCAA women’s water polo tournament

At Spieker Aquatics Center, Los Angeles

Hawaii (11-1) vs. UCLA (13-4)

>> When: Today, 3 p.m.

>> Video: ncaa.com