It seems like everyone is on the same page when it comes to this weekend’s College Cup.
After watching his team get overwhelmed by UCLA last Saturday, Duke coach Robbie Church talked about how it looked like the Bruins were “hitting stride at the right time.”
He’s not the only one who thinks so.
“We’re clicking.” UCLA coach Jill Ellis said.
“We’re peaking at the right time,” senior defender Erin Hardy said.
“I think we’re definitely gelling right now for sure,” redshirt junior forward Kara Lang said.
And when asked what the difference will be in UCLA’s (22-0-2) national semifinal match up against North Carolina (23-1-2) this weekend, Church said it will come down to “who will finish opportunities.”
Flash forward to UCLA’s Monday practice. Ellis had the team running a finishing drill, with one player crossing the ball into the box, and another trying to head it past the keeper.
“It’s still about limiting your mistakes and finishing your chances,” Ellis said.
The circumstances going into Friday seem clear. UCLA is playing some of its best soccer at the right time, and the winner of matches deep in the tournament will likely be decided by who finishes the chances they create.
The Bruins would certainly be a team that knows all about this. Five straight trips to the College Cup have taught players like Hardy a lot. Hardy and the other seniors have made the journey three times, only to come home empty-handed over and over again.
“Unfortunately you feel like every year it’s (going to be) different,” Hardy said. “And that doesn’t necessarily mean it is. … Our ‘SC game was our best performance. Up until that point we knew there was more, but we just hadn’t seen it. So in that sense, it is different than other seasons because in previous seasons, I think we peaked early.”
The team may indeed have to play its best soccer this weekend in Cary, N.C., if they hope to come home with the school’s first national championship. All four No. 1 seeds advanced to the Final Four, and UCLA’s first opponent is arguably the nation’s most perennially dominant program.
The stats tell the story on the Tar Heels. In 28 seasons, UNC is 648-32-19. They have 18 ACC Championships to their name, and 19 national championships to go along with them. Their head coach Anson Dorrance has held the position each of those 29 seasons, and his teams have knocked UCLA out of the College Cup twice in the past five years.
This year’s version of UNC boasts three Hermann Trophy semifinalists. Junior midfielder Tobin Heath played on the U.S. Olympic team with Bruin junior forward Lauren Cheney. Alongside Heath in the midfield is senior Yael Averbuch, who has started every one of the 102 games in her Carolina career. Rounding out the group is Casey Nogueira, the Tar Heels biggest scoring threat. The junior forward has racked up 23 goals so far this season, along with eight assists.
But Ellis said she is most impressed by North Carolina’s depth.
“With Carolina, they’ve always had very, very good players, but it’s their depth that allows them to substitute, allows them to generate pressure,” she said. “Their starting line will play 20, 25 minutes a half, and then you have players of equal ability coming in.”
Carolina’s only loss this year came at home against Notre Dame, the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament, back in early September. The Heels also tied Stanford, another No. 1 seed, and a team UCLA beat in a tight 1-0 match earlier this year.
Unlike the Bruins however, the Tar Heels are coming off an extremely tight 2-1, double-overtime win over Texas A&M in the quarterfinals. The Bruins cruised to a 6-1 at home over Duke last weekend.
And while UCLA will be forced to leave the comforts of Drake Stadium, a place where they have won 55 straight matches, UNC, will be traveling across town to play Friday.
But Hardy said the issue of location is not a problem.
“I think these are the environments we should love ““ to go into a hostile environment,” Hardy said. “We’re just excited.”
Whether this is going to be “the year” for UCLA is hard for anyone on the team to say. But it seems that everyone can agree on a few things.
The team is in a good place and as hungry as ever.
They must convert their scoring chances if they are going to advance.
And no matter what happens, they are going to relish this moment.
“It feels different,” Ellis said. “We have been there before, but I really look at this as, we have an opportunity to win a national championship. Now we’re going to enjoy it and get after it. That’s all you can ask your team to do.”