“Life isn’t fair.”
Texas A&M head coach G. Guerrieri owed that consolation to
UCLA head coach Jillian Ellis after his Aggies stunned the Bruins
in the third round of the NCAA playoffs, defeating UCLA 0-0 (3-1 in
penalty kicks).
His words were of little comfort to a UCLA team who outshot the
Aggies 21-0 and left the field in tears.
“What’s ringing in my ears right now is what
(Guerrieri) said to me after the game,” Ellis said. “I
felt that we outclassed this team, we dominated the
game.”
Junior defender Nandi Pryce put her hands to her face in
disbelief and walked off the soccer field after her penalty kick
flew wide left, sealing the Bruins’ defeat.
Texas A&M raucously celebrated as it gathered on the west
side of the Drake Stadium track, linked arms, lined up side by side
and waved to its 20 or so supporters who had made the trip from
College Station to Westwood, and were audible throughout the match.
The Bruins walked off the field in anger and frustration.
“We should have won the game,” said sophomore
forward Lindsay Greco, who had a frustrating night with seven
missed shots.
“We missed our opportunities but we totally outplayed
them; it’s just unfair. But that’s the game of soccer
sometimes, you win and you lose.”
As they had all season long, the Bruins defensively dominated
their opponent all throughout the 90 minutes of regulation and in
the 20 minutes of overtime play. The UCLA midfield and backline was
spectacular in holding Texas A&M to zero shots in the
match.
Junior goalkeeper Sarah Lombardo was called into very little
action throughout the match, occasionally coming out to retrieve
loose balls and errant crosses. Texas A&M created no serious
runs or any real scoring threats throughout the game.
“We definitely outplayed them defensively,” said
senior Tracey Winzen who finished her UCLA career with a stellar
defensive effort.
As it had all season long, UCLA again had trouble finishing off
its shots and scoring off corner kicks. In addition to 21 shots,
the Bruins had eight corner kicks; the Aggies never took a single
corner kick in the match.
Texas A&M’s defense did do a good job of keeping the
UCLA front line out of rhythm throughout. The Bruins managed to put
a couple shots in the net, but each time, the offside flag went up
and the goal was negated.
UCLA missed its best opportunity to score in the second half
when junior forward Sarah-Gayle Swanson launched a hard shot which
went off Spisak’s hands and dribbled in front of sophomore
forward Kim Devine for a clear shot.
Devine then shot it straight at Spisak, who blocked her shot.
Freshman midfielder Stacey Lindstrom came forward and took a shot
off the loose ball but her shot was saved.
“I don’t know of any other game where a team wins
without taking a shot,” Winzen said.
“I guess on any given day a team can lose even when they
outplay their opponent.”