UCLA sophomore forward Iris Mora will be returning to the
Bruins’ women’s soccer team next season after all.
However, if 90 minutes of soccer had gone differently for the
Mexican women’s national soccer team in the July 12 game
against Japan, she would be representing Mexico in the upcoming
Women’s World Cup held in the United States from Sept. 20 to
Oct. 12.
Instead, host Japan secured the final spot in the tournament
after defeating Mexico 2-0.
Had Mexico qualified, Mora would have missed most of the UCLA
soccer season.
The two teams had played to a 2-2 tie July 5, in front of 75,000
fans in Mexico City. Mora scored a goal in that game to tie the
score 1-1.
UCLA coach Jillian Ellis, who was in attendance in Mexico City,
was pleased with her player’s performance.
“I’m extremely proud of how Iris played on such a
big stage under immense pressure,” Ellis said in a
statement.
In the second game between the teams, Japanese midfielder Homare
Sawa scored on a header in the 56th minute, and substitute Karina
Maruyama scored late in the game to clinch Japan’s fourth
straight appearance in the Women’s World Cup.
“It’s an incredible feeling,” Japan Coach Eiji
Ueda told The Associated Press. “We knew it would be a tough
match, and I’m impressed with the way our players produced
today.”
“If we had won at home, things could have been
different,” Mexico coach Leonardo Cuellar told the AP.
Mora will now return to the Bruins for her sophomore season. She
scored seven goals in 14 games for the team last year.