The men’s soccer team trip to the Pacific Northwest was an
up-and-down weekend ““ in that order.
With Pac-10 standings on the line. No.10 UCLA (9-4-2, 4-2-1
Pac-10) dominated Oregon State (5-10-2, 0-8-1 Pac-10) on Friday
night, winning 3-0, then lost a frustrating 2-0 contest at
Washington (10-5-1, 3-5-1 Pac-10) on Sunday to snap a five-game
winning streak.
“(The games) were night and day,” coach Jorge
Salcedo said. “Against OSU we took our chances well and got a
comfortable win. (On Sunday) there was not enough energy early. We
were lethargic and slow in the beginning.”
Had the Bruins swept the road trip, they would have trailed
conference leader Cal by only two points before playing host to the
Bears next weekend.
The start of the road trip couldn’t have gone any better
for UCLA.
Friday night in Corvallis, the Bruins were the model of
efficiency.
Their first shot of the game was a goal from freshman David
Estrada. Midfielder Sal Zizzo sent a cross into the box and a
running Estrada headed it into the back of the net.The second and
third shots of the game were goals from sophomore Jason
Leopoldo.
All told, the Bruins only had only one shot off the mark.
The three goals scored by UCLA would prove to be more than
enough of a cushion as goalie Eric Reed snagged five saves en route
to his third shutout of the year.
But while everything seemed to go smoothly on Friday, Sunday was
the exact opposite.
UCLA came out flat and fell behind when Washington netted an
early penalty kick from forward Ely Allen.
“They got one penalty kick early and it went from
there,” defender Mike Zaher said. “Against OSU we got
the first goal. Getting the first goal is crucial.”
Even though the Bruins controlled the ball for much of the game,
they were unable to find the back of the net, with the Huskies
dropping into a defensive game plan after their second goal.
“We couldn’t score; it wasn’t falling for us.
Once you go down (against Washington), they sit back,” Zaher
said.
The Bruins’ best opportunity to score on Sunday came late
in the 84th minute, when freshman Kyle Nakazawa set up for a
penalty kick. Nakazawa hit a shot on goal to the left, but keeper
Rylan Hawkins guessed the correct direction and punched the ball
away.
The Bruins attribute the loss more to the lapse in their own
play ““ due in part to fatigue from the road trip ““ than
to improved play from the Huskies.
“Frankly, (the Huskies) played better in L.A. than they
did today,” Salcedo said. “It’s odd, because they
lost there and won here. (But in Los Angeles) they were more
dynamic and had more creativity.”
In the closing minutes of the game in Seattle, UCLA was dealt a
big blow. Zizzo was dribbling into the box when he and the
Washington defender fell to the grass. The two were tangled up and
had trouble getting to their feet.
“On my way up, I tapped him on the side of the face, (as
if to say) “˜Come on, get up.’ He went down screaming,
and the ref gave me a red card.”
Zizzo will have to sit out UCLA’s game at home on Friday
against Stanford, along with Kiel McClung who received his fifth
yellow card of the season in the frustrating loss Sunday.