In the 62nd minute of the UCLA men’s soccer season opener, freshman defender Malcolm Jones rebounded his own missed shot and volleyed it into the back of the net.
The goal, the first of Jones’ college career, broke a scoreless tie that had persisted throughout the majority of the game. Jones’ score would prove to be the game-winner, as the Bruins defeated the New Mexico Lobos 1-0.
“It kind of felt unreal for a second,” Jones said. “I had a first chance … I shot it, that got deflected. When it came back, I just took my time and volleyed it in.”
Though much needed, the Bruins’ score was also inevitable, as the team was out-shooting the Lobos 11-2 in the second half.
“We thought we were on top of them, we had a lot of prior chances, we had a lot of sequences of corner kicks in a row that we had good chances to score,” Jones said. “We kind of felt it coming.”
It was a much different story in the first period, when No. 1 UCLA struggled to dominate possession against an unranked New Mexico. It was over 90 degrees in Drake Stadium, and both sides were “lethargic,” said coach Jorge Salcedo.
“First half we came out … we were just working, trying to get in the groove of things for the first game of the season,” said sophomore forward Seyi Adekoya. “Went into the second half … and really came out with a bang because we knew we could really change the game and we did.”
The Bruins failed to execute offensively in the first half despite a few chances, which were mainly orchestrated by sophomore forward Abu Danladi. The Lobos similarly failed to capitalize on offensive opportunities.
“We talked a lot at half time (about) being more proactive while driving at the other team’s back four, trying to create through combinations play,” Salcedo said. “I thought we were really good in the second half, we deserved maybe more than a goal. There was a flurry of chances, but we could only score one.”
Despite its second-half dominance, UCLA almost conceded another tie after a long New Mexico header downfield created an opportunity in the 73rd minute. The ensuing chaos in front of the goal was calmed by senior midfielder Grady Howe’s clearance, protecting redshirt junior goalkeeper Juan Cervantes’s clean sheet.
The season opener marked the beginning of 16 Bruins’ careers – as 15 freshman and one junior transfer join the team this season. Although the offensive lineup remained mainly unchanged from last season, it was the freshman defender Jones who made the difference.
“A lot of the freshmen stepped up and had good performances,” Salcedo said. “We talk a lot about them just being prepared and being ready to go, and they were.”