Friday, November 1, 1996
W. SOCCER:
Lots of luck, big wins are essential if UCLA hopes to competeBy
Brad Zucker
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
After last Sunday’s demoralizing loss to California, the UCLA
women’s soccer team was "officially" out of the national playoff
race. That is, unless you understand NCAA tournament selection.
In fact, the Bruins (10-6-1, 3-2-0 Pac-10) still have an outside
chance to capture an automatic bid by way of the Pac-10 title. For
this to happen, UCLA must win its remaining conference games
against Oregon State (5-11-0, 1-4-0) and Stanford (9-7-0, 4-0-0)
this weekend at Spaulding Field, then hope for a brain-bending
string of events to occur.
If you wish to read further, I suggest grabbing a couple of
Advil.
First and foremost, either USC or Cal must also beat
league-leader Stanford (the Trojans take on the Cardinal today at
USC). However, since the Bruins lost to both the Trojans and the
Golden Bears, both of those teams must also lose a game before the
regular season ends.
The logic behind the latter point is that even though UCLA has
the same number of losses in conference play as USC and Cal, the
other two hold an edge in head-to-head competition. If Stanford
knocks off either team, then the Bruins only have to worry about
one of them losing another game.
But if both teams defeat the Cardinal, Cal will have to have
lost its prior game and USC will have to lose its last.
If you didn’t follow that, you’re not alone.
"I really don’t understand how things have to play out," head
coach Joy Fawcett said. "We’re still a contender, but our best
chance (at making the NCAA tournament) is probably through an
at-large bid."
Tuesday’s overtime win over USF helped keep that possibility
alive, although the team’s performance was less than optimal.
"They were so down from the loss to Cal, I think it’s the worst
I’ve seen them play," Fawcett said. "But they showed a lot of heart
to come back in the USF game."
The Bruins were led in the "grit" department by Traci Arkenberg.
The superstar forward proved that her toughness rivals her talent
with her gutty performance against the Lady Dons. Injured against
Cal on Sunday, Arkenberg played her way through a painful hip
injury to rack up a goal and an assist in Tuesday’s contest. She
will undergo an MRI before the weekend games as a precaution, but
she is expected to participate.
The challenge for Fawcett’s team might be all the more difficult
as UCLA will have only a day to prepare for Stanford on Sunday. The
coach is not concerned with this aspect, however.
"We saw them play back at UNC (an early-season tournament),"
Fawcett said. "They’re solid everywhere. But I think things are
more dependent on us. The talent is there, it’s just the mentality.
I just need to find a way to get in their heads."
JON FERREY/Daily Bruin
Bree Edwards will try to help sustain UCLA’s playoff hopes.