Eder Arreola lay flat on his back at midfield as a mob of Cal Poly fans rushed onto Marshall Field at Drake Stadium Friday night.
Further up the field, Michael Stephens stood in disbelief, then leaned over to stare at the ground as he brought his hands to his knees.
Brian Perk, with his jersey wrapped around his neck, sat isolated on the bench trying hard to fight back tears.
The sentiment was the same no matter where you looked.
After a disheartening 1-0 loss to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament, a disappointed UCLA men’s soccer team could not come to terms with the fact that its season had just come to an abrupt end. The Bruins (10-5-6) were riding an eight-game unbeaten streak and had only dropped one of their last 15 contests. Perhaps most notably, UCLA had defeated Cal Poly (11-5-6) by a score of 2-1 just 13 days prior.
But on Friday night, when it was win or go home, the Bruins did not demonstrate the style of play that had earned them the Pac-10 Championship and a 26th consecutive postseason appearance.
“We had been playing well for so many weeks, but unfortunately it was just not a good night for us,” coach Jorge Salcedo said. “It’s tough for us to lose the way we did.”
While deflated UCLA players remained silent and consoled one another, the scene was different on the opposite side of the field. Mustang players were scattered among a celebratory crowd draped in Cal Poly forest green and gold.
The fans, along with the players, had reason to celebrate ““ they had just attained the first postseason victory in the program’s 14-year history.
Facing elimination, both teams played safely and looked to maintain possession in the early going. But in the 28th minute, a well-executed Mustang play surprised the Bruin defense.
On the play, Cal Poly senior midfielder Julian Alvarez sent a ball between a pair of UCLA defenders to sophomore forward Ryan Anderson. After receiving the ball, Anderson only had Perk, the goalkeeper, to beat. Perk came up to meet him, but Anderson lofted a ball over Perk’s save attempt into the empty net for the 1-0 advantage. The goal proved to be all the Mustangs would need.
“We weren’t ready for them,” senior forward Maxwell Griffin said.
Just seven minutes after scoring the tie-breaking goal, Anderson drew a red card when he fouled UCLA senior midfielder Jason Leopoldo down the far sideline. The ejection left the Bruins with a favorable 11-on-10 advantage, but it would not last long.
Just three minutes after Anderson’s ejection, UCLA freshman forward Prince Lapnet, who had just come into the match, drew a red card of his own after elbowing a Mustang defender to the ground.
After the game, Salcedo said that he believed Lapnet was manipulated into reacting, which in turn changed the complexion of the match. Following the ejections, Cal Poly took a defensive approach and held on for the victory.
“We created chances but just couldn’t make it happen,” Salcedo said. “Cal Poly played hard and deserved to win.”
The best UCLA scoring opportunity came with three minutes left in the first half. On a corner kick, junior midfielder Stephens sent a rolling pass to Leopoldo on the near side, whose shot was blocked by Mustang goalkeeper Eric Branagan-Franco and deflected toward the top of the box. The ball sailed straight to junior midfielder Danny Suits, who sent a line drive shot that seemed destined for the back of the net. Instead, a Mustang defender standing at the goal line kept the Bruins scoreless by clearing the shot with his head.
Another opportunity to draw even came in the 60th minute, but Arreola’s shot banged off the right post.
The Mustangs implemented a 4-3-3 alignment, which Salcedo thought disrupted his team’s ability to sustain a rhythm offensively. Heading into the match, UCLA had struck for 10 goals combined over its previous three matches. Though Cal Poly’s aggressive play affected the Bruin game plan, Griffin admitted that the team was not as sharp as it usually is.
“It just wasn’t our night,” he said. “We weren’t keeping possession like we used to and we didn’t match up with them for the duration of the game.
“I don’t know if we would have scored even if we had an extra 15 minutes.”
The loss ends the collegiate careers of four UCLA seniors: Griffin, Leopoldo, forward Richard Flores and defender Brad Rusin.
“I’m heartbroken,” Griffin said. “This was my last time playing in a UCLA shirt.”
Rusin described his four years in Westwood as “a great time.”
As he was consoled by another teammate, Griffin echoed the same sentiment.
“Despite tonight,” he said, “these were the best four years of my life.”