In the 11th minute, freshman David Estrada pounced on a
deflected shot from teammate Sal Zizzo in the box and powered it
past Clemson goalkeeper Phil Marfuggi. In celebration, the fired-up
freshman striker ran along the track next to the stands at Drake
Stadium with his arms raised, pumping up the crowd.
“(He made) a great follow-up after the goalie made a nice
save,” Zizzo said. “He always seems to be in the right
place.”
The game would continue with the same intensity for the entire
90 minutes, with eighth-seeded UCLA battling for a 3-0 win over
ninth-seeded Clemson in a very physical contest that saw five
yellow cards and one red card issued.
“There was a lot on the line,” UCLA coach Jorge
Salcedo said. “We were gonna compete for everything, Clemson
competed for everything. That’s why there were as many fouls
as there were.”
Although the Tigers were able to put up a hard fight,
UCLA’s tough defense shut down their ability to create
chances on goal early. UCLA’s back line limited the visitors
to only two first-half shots, while the Bruins totaled eight of
their own. Playing right off their defense, the Bruins showed
themselves to be very comfortable with their recently changed
lineup, which now has freshman midfielder Kyle Nakazawa playing up
top.
“This is the third game that we’ve played with this
lineup,” Salcedo said. “They’re gelling
well.”
With UCLA up 1-0 in the first half, Nakazawa put a free kick
into the box to a diving Zizzo, who headed the ball on goal to put
the Bruins up 2-0.
Although the Bruins were in the driver’s seat with a
comfortable lead, the Tigers had an opportunity to pull within one
goal a little over midway through the second half. Goalkeeper Eric
Reed was lured off the line and had to watch a shot go over his
head and toward the goal.
Helping out, defender Brad Rusin was able to get in position and
clear the shot from the goal line.
“(That play was) huge,” Zizzo said. “2-0, they
say, is the most dangerous lead in soccer. They get one and then
they’re down our throats again. That would have made it 2-1
with 20 minutes left, so it was a huge stop.”
With about six minutes left and Clemson getting frustrated,
Tiger forward Dane Richards fouled sophomore Jason Leopoldo hard
and was sent off with a red card, putting his team down a man and
seemingly sealing a win for UCLA.
The Bruins, who will now have to take to the road, had a victory
lap of sorts in the 90th minute. Zizzo found a streaking Estrada,
who used some crafty dribbling in front of the net and put in his
second goal of the game.
The Bruins now take on the top-seeded Duke Blue Devils on Sunday
at 4 p.m. in Durham, N.C. Duke handled Lehigh 3-0, and now stands
as the biggest roadblock between UCLA and a national title.
“We have nothing to lose,” Salcedo said. “Duke
is the No. 1 seed. … Whatever happens, happens. We go in there as
the underdog and we like our chances being in that
situation.”
While there is some good news for the Bruins about their
upcoming opponents, they aren’t letting themselves think too
much of it.
“(Duke) got beat by Clemson, but we’re gonna come
out and play hard,” Estrada said.