Eight games have gone by this season, and the UCLA men’s soccer team has yet to field its complete team.
An array of injuries have affected every position on the roster, leaving coach Jorge Salcedo without the option of mixing up his lineup.
On the defensive side, junior defender Luis Serrano started the first three games of the season and has been absent ever since.
Freshman forward Fernando Monge was slated to add depth up front but has missed the last two games.
Even junior midfielder Kyle Nakazawa, who had started all 50 games since he arrived in Westwood two years ago, has fallen victim to the injury bug, missing the last three games.
But in Sunday afternoon’s 2-2 tie against Cal State Northridge at Drake Stadium, Salcedo finally got one of his key role players, freshman forward Prince Lapnet, back on the field.
“He’s obviously a great physical presence,” Salcedo said. “He has great size and makes it difficult for the other team’s center backs. He occupies a lot of space and is very good at holding the ball.
“(Sunday) was the first time he’s done anything besides rehab in the last three weeks, so I think once we get him fitter and a little bit sharper, we’ll have a good extra player in Prince.”
With the Bruins down 1-0, Salcedo elected to start Lapnet to open the second half. The move seemed to pay dividends. Lapnet brought aggressiveness and energy immediately after leaving the bench, helping his team to a pair of game-tying goals.
“He held the ball up top for us,” senior midfielder Jason Leopoldo said. “We’ve struggled a lot this year with holding the ball up top and having time to get our guys around the ball. He did that well for us and made our team more dangerous on the offensive side of the field.”
On one possession in front of the net, Lapnet, who is listed at 6 feet, 192 pounds, went airborne on a bicycle kick attempt.
Plays like that give Leopoldo the incentive to believe that Lapnet possesses the skills not often seen for a player his size.
“For his size, he’s got amazing touch,” Leopoldo said. “You don’t see many big guys his size that can control the ball, keep possession and play with it. He brings another attribute to our team that is going to help us out.”
While Lapnet provided a boost to the offensive side of the ball, a triplet of freshmen defenders have held their own in the backfield. The injury to Serrano has left senior Brad Rusin as the only non-freshman in the backfield, and Rusin has taken it upon himself to offer them advice.
“(I tell them to) work hard,” Rusin said. “I talk to them and help them out as much as I can. I try to move the ball quickly to make them feel secure and calm back there.”
Due to injuries earlier in the season, Salcedo opted to play three defensemen in a game against Indiana, which UCLA lost 3-0.
Since then, there have been four players ““ Chris Cummings, Andy Rose, Zack Zerrenner, and Rusin ““ in the backfield.
“We’re a much better team with four guys in the back,” Salcedo said. “I think we have a better understanding of the roles in the group. They’re young guys that are going to take time to gain the experience that they need. But I think you can see from the past weeks that they’ve definitely made strides. I’m really happy with the progress the three of them have made.”
Salcedo can’t help but anticipate what kind of team he will have at his disposal once the injuries diminish and his talented batch of freshmen becomes more knowledgeable.
“Once we get all of our guys healthy, and we’re able to put our best team out there, we’re going to be in a good spot,” Salcedo said.