Even with a 4-1-1 conference record, UCLA women’s soccer team still sits in the middle of the Pac-12 standings.
While the top four teams – No. 22 Colorado, No. 10 California, Utah and No. 3 Stanford – face off this week, No. 12 UCLA women’s soccer (10-3-1) has a chance to climb the table when it hosts unranked Washington (6-8-1, 1-5-0 Pac-12) and Washington State (6-7-1, 1-5-0) in the team’s final home stand.
Two wins could propel the Bruins from sixth place into a top-three position in the conference, but two losses would effectively end their chances of claiming the Pac-12 title.
“These games are extremely important, just like every game is,” said senior midfielder Annie Alvarado. “Coming out with two wins this weekend is huge. It’s huge for the Pac-12 and it’s also huge for (us) going forward and getting momentum later into the season.”
The Washington schools have nearly identical resumes: both have struggled in conference play and on the road. The Huskies fell short in each of their last five away games and the Cougars have yet to notch a victory outside their home field in Pullman, Washington.
But last year’s visit to Washington was a fiasco for UCLA. The Bruins lost to both teams in the same year for the first time since 1998.
These defeats, just like the entire 2015 season, are outliers. Since 2000, UCLA has amassed a 23-3-4 record against Washington and Washington State.
Like most of the Pac-12 teams, the Huskies and Cougars boast physical, athletic lineups. But despite being undersized, the Bruins’ game plan hasn’t changed.
“Our strength as a team is small, good soccer playing: clean, crisp, two feet – understanding when there are times to go,” said senior defender/midfielder Gabbi Miranda. “Our strong suit is to play a little more indirect and break them down through our passing.”
The offense has been efficient the past two weeks, even with the absence of senior forward Darian Jenkins, who was injured at the beginning of the month. Without the veteran leader, the Bruins have scored five goals in three recent games.
While the team’s average goals per game has slightly diminished since Jenkins’ season-ending injury – it was 2.27 before and 1.66 after – redshirt freshman forward/midfielder Anika Rodriguez said the chemistry continues to spark on the offensive end.
“The trust and confidence in each other has completely changed since and it’s just been building and building ever since,” Rodriguez said. “If I play a ball, someone is going to be there … and our crossing and finishing, people will be in the box.”
Sunday will be the last time the seven seniors step on the field at Drake Stadium during the regular season. Six of the seven, excluding transfer senior forward/defender Amber Munerlyn, are the only remaining members of the 2013 National Championship team.
Without the squad of seasoned soccer players next year, the biggest void to fill on the pitch may not be the diverse skill set each has to offer, but rather the leadership they provide in each contest.
“We actually have a mantra and it’s ‘infectious influence.’ I think all of our seniors have that within them,” Rodriguez said. “They step on the field and everything changes, you can just feel the intensity go up and everyone just feeds off of it.”