Winning six of its past seven games, the UCLA men’s soccer
team has become the center of attention in the Pac-10. In the
process, a few Bruins have been cast under the spotlight for their
excellent individual performances this past weekend. Senior
defender Jordan Harvey has been named the Pac-10 Men’s Soccer
Player of the Week. In addition, the senior also received national
recognition, as Soccer America magazine named him the National
Player of the Week. “It’s definitely an honor,”
Harvey said. “It’s great to know that your hard work is
paying off.” But whether his hard work goes recognized or
not, Harvey’s work ethic continues to be consistent. “I
go into each game with the right attitude that I’m going to
work my butt off,” Harvey said. “I’m not the
flashiest player, but I’m willing to work for my
teammates.” Harvey contributed on both ends of the field in
UCLA’s victories over Cal and Stanford. The Capistrano Valley
High School alumnus sealed the Bruins’ upset victory over the
previously undefeated Golden Bears as he scored a goal to put UCLA
up 2-0 with eight seconds left in the game. Against Stanford, he
put UCLA on the board first with a goal in the 34th minute, which
later proved to be the game-winning goal. On the defensive end,
Harvey helped UCLA record its fifth and sixth shutouts of the
season. Harvey and the rest of the Bruin defenders allowed 11 shots
from Cal and held Stanford to just two. Another Bruin honored last
week is sophomore defender Marvell Wynne, as he earned Top Drawer
Soccer National Team of the Week honors after recording the
game-winning goal in the Bruins’ win over Cal. The goal was
Wynne’s first in his collegiate career. Coach Jorge Salcedo
believes the individual honors bestowed on Harvey and Wynne are a
reflection of the team’s solid performance of late.
“Generally, players don’t win the Pac-10 Player of the
Week without the team performing well,” Salcedo said.
“I think it says more about the team than it does the
individual.” Harvey agrees with his coach. “Individual
awards just show that our team is doing well,” he said.
“I think it gives the entire team confidence to see one of
their own up there.”
MOVING ON UP: With two impressive shutout victories against Cal
and Stanford, the Bruins have climbed the rankings in national
polls. They moved up to No. 6 in the Soccer America rankings and
jumped 11 spots to No. 12 in the NSCAA/adidas poll. The Bruins are
ranked No. 5 in the Top Drawer Soccer and College Soccer News polls
and No. 8 in the Soccer Times poll. The Bruins, though, won’t
let the high rankings get to their head. “We were humbled by
our two losses this year,” Harvey said. “We’re
confident, but not overconfident.”
GREAT EXPECTATIONS: UCLA was picked by the Pac-10 coaches as the
favorite to win the Pac-10 Conference title for the fourth year in
a row. The Bruins received five of six first-place votes (coaches
were not allowed to pick their own teams), totaling 25 points.
“When other coaches choose us to win the conference, we feel
like we are well-respected around the Pac-10,” Salcedo said.
“Hopefully we can live up to those expectations.”
Washington, who the Bruins will play this Saturday in an away game,
received the second-most points with 19. Rounding out the poll were
California (18 points), Stanford (13), Oregon State (10) and San
Diego State (5).