Coming off two decisive victories against No. 18 Loyola Marymount and No. 7 Hawai’i on Saturday, No. 2 UCLA had plenty of momentum entering the second day of the four-game UC Irvine Invitational.
However, the Bruins then faced their toughest opponents this season: No. 3 USC and No. 1 Stanford.
After defeating the Trojans in the semifinal game 5-3, the Bruins advanced to the championship game against the Cardinal. In the title game, UCLA was able to pull away in double overtime to defeat Stanford 7-6.
UCLA’s win over Stanford broke the Cardinal’s 27-game win streak, which included four straight wins against the Bruins. The last time the Bruins defeated the Cardinal was a year ago – Feb. 23, 2014 – also at the UC Irvine Invitational.
“To get a win is really big,” said coach Brandon Brooks. “We had great performances all around and all throughout the weekend. I’m very proud of what we are doing, and it shows that we are on the right path.”
The Bruin defense led the way all weekend, holding each of its opponents to single digits. With strong defense in the cage from redshirt senior goalkeeper Sami Hill, UCLA was able to focus on its offense, which scored 34 goals in the tourney, with 22 on Saturday.
“We had two pretty good games, but I thought we came out a little slow, so we had to pick it up in the second half of each game,” Hill said. “We tried to make it a point to really emphasize our team defense, because on offense we weren’t really hitting as many shots as we should have been. I think toward the end of each game we started to mesh together a little bit better than at the beginning of each game.”
Though UCLA came out slower than usual on offense during the first quarter of its game against Hawai’i, the Bruins were eventually able to pick up their pace.
“I think in the second game we were more energetic,” said junior attacker Charlotte Pratt. “On offense, we were more patient, and we let opportunities develop and didn’t crash as much.”
Pratt, who scored three goals in the first day of the tournament, sparked the Bruins’ offense and helped engineer a 10-4 victory against Hawai’i.
“As a team, I think we were really strong defensively,” Pratt said. “What helps with that is communication and having a really strong goalie to back you up. I think a combination of teamwork and communication really feeds into having a defense that gets a lot of stops.”
Going into Sunday’s games against USC and Stanford, UCLA said it knew that the team had to come out faster and stronger on offense. With USC’s explosive offense averaging 22.9 goals per game thus far this season, it would be key for UCLA to play solid defense.
The Bruins were able to do just that, miring the Trojans in a defensive struggle throughout. UCLA emerged from the teeter-totter match with a 5-3 win over USC, placing the Bruins in the title game against the Cardinal.
“Every chance that we get to play (Stanford) is another chance to practice playing in a big game,” Hill said.
In the championship game against the Cardinal, the Bruins were able defeat their biggest competition thus far in the season in dramatic fashion.
Tied at five at the end of regulation, both Stanford and UCLA were able to add one additional goal to the score, tying the game at six goals apiece. In double overtime, the Bruins were able to hold the Cardinal to their six goals while adding a goal of their own, capping off the championship game with a 7-6 win.