With a team loaded with freshmen, the UCLA men’s soccer
team is in what many would call a rebuilding year. However, these
freshmen come out to prove every game that, rookies or not, they
can play with the best of ’em. They’ll have to do just
that this Wednesday when they play their first NCAA Tournament
game.
There are 12 freshmen, including lead goal-scorer David Estrada,
goalkeeper Brian Perk and starting midfielder Kyle Nakazawa.
“At this point of the year, they’re no longer really
freshmen,” coach Jorge Salcedo said. “They’ve
been through a whole year, and a lot of them have
contributed.”
“I think they have contributed very well to the
group,” senior goalkeeper Eric Reed said in agreement.
“It’s hard to incorporate so many guys into a team, but
I think they’ve stepped up and handled the situation better
than any other year has.”
Reed seems unconcerned about leaving his post after
graduation.
“Perk and Trevor (Hunter) are very good
goalkeepers,” he said. “And they’re both going to
be very successful here.”
Perk has had a noteworthy first season, including seven starts
and 29 saves with a save percentage of 74.4. He has allowed only 10
goals this season, and UCLA’s record when he has started is
3-1-3.
Forward David Estrada believes he’s up for the challenge
on Wednesday.
“Mentally and physically I think I’m ready, and
I’m going to get prepared,” Estrada said.
“I’ve been getting prepared these last couple
practices.”
Estrada seems satisfied with his performance over the course of
the year, but he believes there is always room for improvement.
“I want to get faster and stronger because I’m one
of the smallest guys on the team,” he said. “Hopefully
during summer and spring, I’ll work on those
things.”
Besides skill on the field, some of the freshmen have also
showed terrific character.
“In the game against Santa Clara, David Estrada was
warming up to go in the game, and Jason (Leopoldo) scored a good
goal and David was on the side,” Salcedo recounts. “In
the videotape you can see how excited he was for his team even
though he wasn’t on the field. To me that shows how
(dedicated) they are to the team and the team doing well. That was
probably my favorite moment.”
Though it is exciting to imagine all of these amazing freshmen
growing together and dominating the league when they’re
seniors, Salcedo expresses a problem with this fantasy.
“We’ve had to bring in a lot because we’ve
lost a lot of players over the last couple years,” he said.
“We’ve lost a lot early to the pros, which makes it
difficult to have any continuity. I hope that, of the big group
that we brought in, a majority of them will stay for four years. Is
it likely? I doubt it.”
Salcedo admits how difficult this makes building a team and
holds hopes that at least 80 percent of the freshmen stay for four
years.
However, at this point, the freshmen and the team aren’t
concerned with such a distant future. They are directing all their
energy toward Wednesday, when they will face Harvard at Drake
Stadium at 7 p.m. in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.