Instead of being a knockdown drag-out fight for family
supremacy, the battle of the Gregorio brothers turned into a 5-0
laugher.
“5-0 is a good result, but I feel bad for my bro (Andrew).
He did well individually,” UCLA’s Adolfo Gregorio
said.”
Adolfo Gregorio’s brothers play soccer for Fresno State
““ David is a sophomore and Andrew a freshman.
Despite the result, the No. 1 Bruins (10-1, 3-0 Pac-10) were not
expected to play so well against Fresno State (3-8, 0-3
Pac-10).
UCLA struggled to beat New Mexico on Thursday, 1-0, while the
Bulldogs played tough in two losses to the Bruins last season.
But after the Bruins’ offense was stymied against the
Lobos, coach Tom Fitzgerald went to a more aggressive system,
employing three forwards and only three midfielders.
“We put three forwards up front, to be more aggressive and
to hopefully score goals early, so we can put them on their heels
right away,” Fitzgerald said.
The strategy paid dividends immediately as starting forward Matt
Taylor scored his ninth goal of the year on a five-yard shot in the
ninth minute. Taylor’s goal gave UCLA an early 1-0 lead and
essentially took the wind out of the Bulldogs’ sails.
Four minutes later Gregorio set up forward Cliff McKinley who
blasted a 10-yard shot past Fresno State goalkeeper Eric Kronberg
for his first goal of the year.
“You really never expect it to be this easy,” Taylor
said. “We scored some early goals and we just broke down all
of their confidence and shape.”
“I expected to win, but definitely not this easily. Maybe
they were scared because we are No. 1,” Gregorio said.
After McKinley’s goal, Fitzgerald subbed in six players in
a two-minute span. He used 25 players overall in the game,
including three goalkeepers.
“Considering the result of the game, it was a good way for
us to get some playing time for our bench players,”
Fitzgerald said.