Before traveling to the Pacific Northwest to take on the
Washington schools, the UCLA women’s soccer team vowed that
it would take each game as it came.
Call it mission half-accomplished.
The seventh-ranked Bruins split their two games, falling to
unranked Washington State before rebounding to thrash
Washington.
Now the Bruins face two crucial games this weekend at Drake
Stadium against in-state rivals No. 18 Stanford and Cal. Already
saddled with one loss, UCLA cannot afford another or its conference
title hopes could be in serious jeopardy.
“We need to really take one game at a time, come out
excited, and play focused for the entire game,” junior
midfielder Jill Oakes said. “We sort of looked beyond the
quote-end-quote easier team last week and we lost.”
That being said, this week there is no clear delineation of an
“easier” opponent. Both Stanford (9-3-2, 1-1-1 Pac-10)
and Cal (8-3-2, 1-1-1) are loaded with talent, and were expected to
contend for the conference title in the preseason. Stanford
features All-American goalkeeper Nicole Barnhardt, while the Bears
have a strong offense led by junior forward Liz Eisenberg.
Considering the relative equality of the two teams’
talent, it seems less likely for UCLA to have a letdown. But there
will be other factors involved ““ namely the rain that has
soaked the Drake Stadium field over the course of the week.
Compound the rain with the UCLA men’s soccer team playing
Stanford immediately before the women’s game on Friday, and
the playing surface could very well be shredded by game time.
“Hopefully it won’t rain at all anymore between now
and our game,” sophomore defender Michelle Gleason said.
“But the surface will be bad with the guys playing right
before us; even though we have spikes, a slippery surface is hard
to play on.”
Oakes believes that if the grass is soft and chewed up, it could
be a problem for the Bruins’ passing, a key part of the
attack for a team that likes to possess the ball.
“We like keeping it on the ground and possessing, if the
grass is still soft tomorrow, especially with the boys playing
right before us, then it is definitely a disadvantage,” Oakes
said.
One advantage that UCLA likely will have is on the injury front,
where three key players are slated to return.
Coach Jill Ellis said that sophomore midfielder Caitlin Ursini,
who has been out with a broken wrist for the past three weeks, will
return Friday.
Sophomore defender Mary Castelanelli will test out her injured
back, while Gleason, who has been hindered by a high ankle sprain,
is day-to-day.