UCLA men’s soccer was ranked No. 1 in the new NCAA RPI rankings on Monday. But the Bruins were hit with some disappointing news when the NCAA Tournament bracket was released later in the day.
In the bracket, not only were the Bruins (11-4-4) given the No. 2 overall seed, they were also placed in a situation where their first and second games of the tournament could come against teams that handed UCLA three of its four losses in the regular season.
After a first-round bye, the Bruins could face the San Diego Toreros, who defeated UCLA 1-0 in San Diego earlier this season.
For that matchup to take place, USD (10-5-4) will have to win at home against Cal State Fullerton (10-7-6) in the first round on Thursday night. With USD having a 6-3-1 home record this year, and Fullerton having a 4-4-4 road record, USD looks to be in a favorable position to get to the second round, where it will face UCLA.
Luckily for UCLA, the potential rematch between the two teams in the second round would be in Westwood and not San Diego.
If UCLA is able to get past USD in the second round, it will then potentially be set to face arguably its biggest nemesis of the regular season: Cal.
No. 15 seed Cal (10-6-1) was the one team that consistently seemed to have UCLA’s number during the regular season. The Bears were the only team to beat the Bruins twice, as they went 2-0 against UCLA in the regular season, with one win coming in overtime at Berkeley and the other being a harrowing loss for the Bruins on their home field.
For that matchup to become a reality, Cal must win its second round game at home against either Southern Illinois University Edwardsville or Northwestern. A win in the second round at home might not be a sure thing for Cal, however. After starting the season with a 6-0 record at home, the Bears stumbled significantly down the stretch, losing each of their last three games of the season – all at home.
In the end, though the draw looks unfortunate for UCLA at the start, it potentially gives the Bruins a shot at redemption against teams they’ve lost to. And redemption is something that UCLA men’s soccer has aimed for ever since its third-round defeat to an unseeded University of Connecticut team in the NCAA Tournament last year.
Compiled by Matthew Joye, Bruin Sports senior staff.