I'll start off this thread with the Bruins' 2002 schedule. They have a really solid non-conference schedule. I'm sure the games against Virginia, Penn State, BYU, Santa Clara, and the Mexican NT will be good ones.
Hmmm...I'm not liking those TBA times against the Mexican NT and Santa Clara. The SCU site has the game listed as being at 6:30, but who knows if that's accurate. Anyone have access to a more up-to-date schedule?
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game times If the Santa Clara site has the game listed for 6:30, then that should be about right. Are you thinking of going? In the past, UCLA's Friday games have on the most part been in the evening. As for the game against the Mexican NT, I think it will probably be an afternoon game.
UCLA vs. USD and etc Here is the recap and box score of last Friday’s 6-0 win over USD. All of this was done without Jill Oakes, who was with the U-19s in Canada. She’ll be back for this weekend’s games against Virginia and Penn State in the UCLA Women’s Cup. Three of UCLA’s other top freshmen have already made contributions--Stacy Lindstrom (1 g) who also scored a goal in the 2-1 exhibition win over Pepperdine two weeks ago, Katie Rivera (1 g, 1 a), and Iris Mora (2 g). The freshmen and also BYU transfer Kim Devine add a lot of firepower to an offense that already includes Lindsay Greco, who is returning from an ACL injury, and Sarah-Gayle Swanson. So I think the Bruins will be okay despite losing seven starters from last season. Many of the bench players last year could have easily been starters, and the same goes for this season (i.e. Amy Fazio--I am and have been waiting to see her become the regular left back). There’s only one senior in Tracey Winzen on this young ’02 squad. Anyway, Virginia and Penn State should be good competitive games this Friday and Sunday.
Re: game times The Bruins schedule has indeed been updated to show a 2 p.m. start time for the game vs. the Mexican NT. I am thinking of going to the SCU game. I was concerned about the accuracy of the time on the SCU site because a few of the Bruins' weekday games are afternoons as well, like this Friday's 2 p.m. game vs. Virginia. (Now the UCLA site has the SCU game listed at 7 p.m. so who knows!) I guess I'm a bit spoiled by living in an area where women's soccer can pull a "prime time" weekday slot, but it's still surprising to me that UCLA gets the #5 and #12 teams in the country to come to a tournament and then plays the games in a time slot it's almost impossible to watch them in. I'm also surprised at the time of the BYU game (2 p.m. on a Wednesday). The Pac-10 games are all at 7 p.m. on weekdays at least. Thanks for the recap/thoughts on the USD game!
If you do decide to go to the UCLA-SCU game, then I can help with directions if you need them. I'm looking forward to seeing this matchup. Last year when they played at Santa Clara, I considered going up there but I ended up not because it would've been too much trouble given that the game was on a Thursday night. You're right--the scheduled game times are sometimes an inconvenience and make it difficult to draw a large crowd but if you love the team, you find a way to fit their games into your schedule. I know it was kind of a hassle last year when UCLA played Washington on a Friday at 2pm (because Fox Sports was airing the game) and then also hosted the first round of the NCAA tournament on a Friday afternoon. Parking is definitely not easy when you have to battle with students, faculty, and other sports-goers for spots but you learn to deal with it.
I usually just park at the structure by Pauley when I go to UCLA events, because I'm too much of a bum to learn the other lots. Which one is that...Lot 6 I think? Is there a better place to park for Drake, especially on a weekday/night?
You're good in lot 6. That's where I usually park. Lot 4 is another option. It's off Sunset, so instead of taking the Wilshire exit on the 405, you'd take the Sunset exit and go east for about 2 miles to get there. I prefer lot 6 because if it gets full, then lots 8 and 9 are nearby. When lot 4 gets full, for people who aren't familiar with the area, lot 6 (and 8 and 9) might be a little bit of trouble to get to.
UCLA Women's Cup The second annual UCLA Women's Cup starts today. I actually won't know whether I'll be able to go to the Virginia game until the last minute (it's because of that 2pm start time on a Friday afternoon), but I will definitely be at the Penn State game on Sunday. The play of the soon-to-be tested UCLA freshmen will be an important factor in the Bruins' success this weekend.
Game versus Virginia The Bruins recover from a 2-0 deficit to edge out the Cavaliers 4-3, in the 98th minute of play... http://www.collegesports.com/sports/w-soccer/stories/090602acg.html
Bruins vs. Penn State A heartbreaking 1-0 loss for the Bruins in double OT. I thought it was much like UCLA's double OT loss to Florida in last December's NCAA quarterfinals (wherein UCLA outshot its opponent by a fairly large margin and controlled most of the match). I'll add my thoughts on the game tomorrow morning because I'm too lazy and tired right now.
Re: Bruins vs. Penn State Just some things about the game... Katie Rivera got her first collegiate start, and I want to say again that she is an incredible talent. She’s fast and has tremendous technical ability to go with that speed. She was making a lot of things happen up top before she left the game due to injury about halfway into the first half. I'm not sure exactly what happened but she got clocked somewhere on the face because that's where she and the trainers were applying ice. They attended to her on the sidelines for a while, and then took her away on a cart. I don't expect this to keep her out of the next game though. It took a while before the team adjusted to not having her on the field. She was doing a good job of keeping possession up top and creating a lot of chances for herself and her teammates. Jill Oakes spent the first half in central defense and then went to central midfield in the second half. What can I say, she’s great--she does everything a coach would want her to do. Stacy Lindstrom, an impact freshman herself, can chuck the ball about 30 yards on a throw-in, and it's not a flip throw. It's a good weapon to have and as dangerous as a corner kick when UCLA gets a throw-in deep in their attacking third. I don’t want to leave out Allie True, another freshman starter who had a solid game--winning head balls and helping UCLA control the midfield. With about 20 minutes left in regulation, UCLA threw everything at Penn State and was just really unlucky not to score. Sarah-Gayle Swanson was denied twice on the same play. PSU’s keeper Amanda Brown punched out her initial shot and then it rebounded right back to Sarah but her second shot was saved off the line by a PSU defender. Lindsay Greco had some golden opportunities of her own--she cranked one shot just over the crossbar and a few minutes later had a shot roll just wide of the right post after PSU's keeper came too far off her line. The game could have ended in the first OT when Iris Mora had a 1v1 with Amanda Brown. Iris was dribbling towards the goal and had complete control of the ball. As she was winding up for a shot, Amanda Brown was coming at her full speed and knocked her down. If this had been a WUSA game, I'm sure the ref would've called a PK. Oh well, no use complaining about it now. It just seems like in college the refs are more hesitant to call PKs. While Penn State was fortunate to miss defeat a bunch of times, they did have their own chances. Of Christie Welsh's five shots in the game, I'd say three were good ones, obviously one of them being the game-winner. She was pretty much contained throughout the game. Nandi (who flew back from USWNT camp on Saturday) and the Bruin defense did a good job on her. Amy Fazio got her first start of the 2002 season at left back, and there is a reason I feel that she should be there every game. On many occasions she made a defensive stop and then started the Bruin attack up the left flank. She didn't play the whole game though (subbed out after about 15 minutes into the second half). Amy will only get better with Michelle French's guidance. Sarah Lombardo (Bruin keeper) had a great game. The times when Penn State had a 1v1 with her, she didn't commit to making the first move and came up with big saves. But, there wasn't anything she could do about the game-winner.
Bruins in Hawaii No. 5 Bruins Head to Hawai'i for Outrigger Soccer Classic Regarding Katie Rivera's injury that I mentioned above:
Bruins vs. USF The Bruins won their first game of the Outrigger Soccer Classic in Hawaii against San Francisco, 4-1. All four UCLA goals were scored by freshmen--Iris Mora with a hat trick and Katie Rivera with her fourth of the season. Box Score Iris and Katie now lead the team in scoring with ten points each.
Re: Bruins vs. USF That's awesome. It definitely bodes well for the future of the team, as well as the present, that the freshmen (all the freshmen, actually, not just Mora and Rivera) are immediately contributing to such a degree. With one lone senior on the squad and the team looking darn good so far this season, the Bruins should be serious contenders not just this year but for several years to come. NICE. I'm glad to see that playing with the mask (I'm assuming she's playing with a mask) isn't slowing Katie down any. Those things are awful to have to wear. I noticed in the press release that it hasn't been determined yet which team, UCLA or Mexico, Iris will play for on the 28th. I'm sure both teams are pleading their cases at this point!
Re: Re: Bruins vs. USF You definitely have to love the freshmen. They're great. I would say this class might even be better than UCLA's 2000 recruiting class that was ranked No. 1 in the country and includes Nandi Pryce, Sarah-Gayle Swanson, Lindsay Greco, Kathryn Lee, and Whitney Jones. I think a lot of people were unsure of how the Bruins would fare this year (as seen in some preseason polls) just because they lost seven very good starters. The 2001 team was supposed to be the one that was the soccer program's best chance to win a national championship, because it was more talented and experienced than the 2000 team that lost to UNC in the championship. I liken the 2001 Bruins to the 1999 Santa Clara team. That year’s Broncos were--at the time--Jerry Smith's best chance for a national championship, which obviously came two years later. [As an aside, it still surprises me when I think of how Santa Clara didn't win in ‘99 with all of the talent they had in Mandy Clemens, Aly Wagner, Danielle Slaton, Jacqui Little, Anna Kraus, Kylie Bivens, Kim Pickup, Nikki Serlenga, etc, etc. That was a very talented group to say the least.] Anyway, I do like UCLA's chances to win a championship before the 2000 recruiting class graduates. One possibility for Iris is that she could suit up for both teams--one half for the NT and the other half for UCLA. I think it would be doable, since I've seen something like that before. In early 2001 while the U.S. U-21s were in training camp at ARCO for the Algarve Cup, UCLA was one of the college teams that scrimmaged against the U-21s. There were three Bruins at the U-21 camp (Krista Boling, Stephanie Rigamat, and Mary-Frances Monroe), so when the two teams scrimmaged, Krista and Stephanie each played one half for UCLA and one half for the U-21s.
Bruins vs. Hawaii The Bruins concluded their weekend in Hawaii with a 2-0 win over the host of the Outrigger tournament. UCLA moves to 4-1 on the season. Box Score
Re: Re: Re: Bruins vs. USF All that talent couldn't get through that stellar Notre Dame defense in the College Cup semis (that was a great game!). Actually, that ND team has as almost many WUSA players now as that Santa Clara team does: LaKeysia Beene, Kelly Lindsey, Jen Grubb, Anne Makinen, Jenny Mascaro, Monica Gonzales... Me, too. It's looking good so far! That could be fun for Iris (and for the fans)! I hope she gets to do that if she wants to. Congrats to the Bruins for staying focused while in Hawaii and winning that tournament.
It would've been an even better game had Santa Clara won that game and then went on to play in the championship. LaKeysia was just too good that day...she saved everything that came her way. I know I was a little worried that the girls might get a little too caught up in the beaches and sun of Hawaii. So needless to say, I was glad that they picked up those two wins over USF and Hawaii.
Bruins vs. Fresno State UCLA traveled up to Fresno State yesterday and picked up a 3-0 win, getting second half goals from Katie Rivera, Jill Oakes, and Lindsay Greco. Box Score Tomorrow the Bruins host Cal State Northridge.
Bruins vs. CSUN The Bruins shut out CSUN on Sunday 4-0. Goals from Kim Devine, Stacy Lindstrom, Sarah-Gayle Swanson, and Lindsay Greco. Katie Rivera, who has been phenomenal off the bench this season, assisted on Stacy's goal and continues to lead the team in scoring with 13 points. Box Score UCLA takes on BYU tomorrow afternoon.