By Mark Shapiro
Daily Bruin Staff
It has been an up-and-down early season for the 10th-ranked UCLA
men’s soccer team. The Bruins started off by posting a pair of huge
early season victories on their way to capturing the Indiana
Adidas/MetLife Classic and the No. 3 ranking. The Bruins then came
crashing back down to earth with back-to-back losses before
righting themselves last Sunday against San Francisco.
This weekend the Bruins head north for yet another tournament to
do battle with Portland and Washington at the Nike Husky Classic.
The key word for the weekend will be "consistency," as UCLA looks
to improve itself in regional play and bolster its offensive
output.
By this time last year the Bruin offense had posted 15 goals,
but this season only eight have been tallied, three of those coming
in one game. Moreover, players who were expected to fill the
scoring shoes left by graduates Eddie Lewis and Ante Razov have
fallen short of expectations.
The Bruins had expected to rely heavily upon returner Seth
George, but the sophomore has picked up little of the offensive
slack, notching just three goals as of Sunday. The biggest
disappointments, however, have been the lack of output from
sophomore Tom Poltl and freshman Martin Bruno. Poltl has yet to
tally a single goal or assist, while Bruno has gone scoreless with
only one assist.
"If we don’t get a shutout, we don’t get a win. The bottom line
is the forwards need to step up," UCLA head coach Sigi Schmid said.
"They need to hold the ball, be goal-dangerous and finish. It
really falls on the shoulders of Poltl and Bruno. They really need
to find the back of the net."
The Bruins’ matchup with Portland (3-3) on Friday may be just
what the doctor ordered. The Pilots have been a team known more for
an attacking style than defensive soccer. In addition, consistency
has been a problem as well. Of their nine goals on the year, six
came in one game.
"Portland’s hot and cold. But they’re always physical and they
work hard," Schmid said. "Their defense is shaky, but their offense
has some good weapons."
Sunday’s matchup will pose a much greater obstacle as the Bruins
take on the fourth-ranked University of Washington. Under the
tutelage of former UCLA assistant Dean Wurtzberger, the Huskies
have rocketed up in the rankings, knocking off three top-20 teams
and the defending national champions, Wisconsin, along the way.
Freshman forward Rees Bettinger has stepped up to lead
Washington with six goals. The Huskies also play a more
conservative brand of soccer, which could give the Bruins fits if
they fall behind early.
"Washington is solid defensively and tough to beat," Schmid
said. "We can’t get behind because they will make it hard and put
eight, nine guys behind the ball. If we can score first, we can get
them to open up."
After early season flounderings against Fresno State and
California, the Bruins find themselves 0-2 in regional play – an
area which is a pivotal ingredient in the NCAA tournament selection
recipe. With both of this weekend’s games falling into the regional
category, and with Cal’s earlier loss to San Jose State, a sweep
could be the perfect tonic.
"If we win both games, then our world’s back in order," Schmid
said.
* * *
On the injury front, midfielder Sasha Victorine still has
tenderness in his separated shoulder, but has been playing
nonetheless.
"It’s taken away from his aggressiveness to go forward because
when you do, you might get tackled," Schmid said.
* * *
Six games into the season, George is pacing all Bruin scorers
with three goals and two assists. Midfielder Josh Keller, by virtue
of his two goals and two assists, is second on the squad.