Entering the weekend, Cal men’s soccer was to UCLA men’s soccer essentially what Stanford football was to UCLA football.
The Golden Bears had gone 2-0 against the Bruins during the regular season – the only team to defeat UCLA twice – and hadn’t lost at Drake Stadium since 2011. Just like Stanford football, Cal was the only thing standing between UCLA and playoff advancement, as the two teams squared off at Drake Stadium on Sunday night with a spot in the NCAA quarterfinals at stake.
“Coming into UCLA, everybody talks about, ‘Cal, Cal,’ just being one of the rivals,” said freshman left back Chase Gasper. “So, from the start, your mindset is: The one game you want to win, especially, is against Cal.”
Unlike the UCLA football team, however, UCLA men’s soccer got the monkey off its back this weekend, defeating its Bay Area nemesis 3-2 in a game that the Bruins never trailed.
The No. 2-seeded Bruins (13-4-4) conquered their Pac-12 foe by doing something that they failed to do in their first two games against the Golden Bears this year: score first. UCLA did so in the 30th minute, as senior midfielder Leo Stolz launched a cross that perfectly deflected off the head of a charging Gasper for the game’s initial score, which was also the first of Gasper’s young career.
“The coaches have been promoting both outside backs to just get forward and help with the attack,” Gasper said. “And Leo put in a fantastic ball, and you know I just thought optimistically and thought, ‘Hey, put my head on it, and see what happens.’”
Though Cal (11-7-1) entered the game with the nation’s No. 1 offense, the Bears had trouble keeping pace with the Bruin attack all night long. Within five minutes of Gasper’s initial goal, sophomore midfielder Brian Iloski added his first goal of the season – a screamer from 35 yards out – to give the Bruins a loud 2-0 lead.
Then, a little bit of déjà vu set in for UCLA.
With their 2-0 lead in the first 35 minutes, the Bruins were in the same position that they were in during their NCAA third-round game against Connecticut a year earlier. And when Cal scored a highlight-reel goal from 40 yards out in the 49th minute, the anxious feeling of the UConn collapse was in the air once again.
“We started to worry maybe a little bit with a 2-1 score,” said junior midfielder Jordan Vale. “I thought (the 2-1 score) gave us a little bit of urgency.”
In the 55th minute, Vale had a scoring chance that was very similar to the one he had a year earlier, in the 102nd minute against UConn. This time, however, Vale’s shot off a cross was not saved by the opposing goalie, instead hitting the back of the net to give UCLA all the cushion it needed to hang on for the win.
“I love the mentality of this group. We weren’t content with just 2-1 – we wanted to make it 3-1,” said coach Jorge Salcedo. “And obviously we needed the third goal to win the game.”
Vale’s goal proved to be crucial, as Cal answered back with a goal in the 74th to make it 3-2. But when Cal tried time and time again to find the equalizer, UCLA clamped down, not allowing a goal, not allowing history to repeat itself and not allowing its rival to break the Bruins’ hearts once again.
Third time’s the charm.