With the two-game sweep of the Arizona schools this past weekend, the No. 3 women’s soccer team got off to a good start on its quest for a seventh consecutive Pac-10 title.
As has been the case all season long, it wasn’t just senior star power that fueled the team to a pair of wins on Friday and Sunday.
In fact, UCLA’s freshman players were called upon to play significant minutes down the stretch, a strategy that coach Jillian Ellis most certainly has not shied away from all season.
“All in all, the freshman have been making huge contributions for us,” she said. “They’ve been tremendous … and with (the past weekend) I think they’re really starting to feel what the level of play is like at the Pac-10.”
In each of the two weekend games, the Bruins started three freshmen: midfielders Zakiya Bywaters and Chelsea Cline as well as defender Lucretia Lee.
Bywaters, whose game-tying goal on Sunday helped UCLA avoid the upset by Arizona State, has started 10 games this season and leads the team in assists with five.
“Things are going well, confidence-wise,” Bywaters said. “As freshmen coming in, it’s good that we’re getting more experience, because we’re the future of UCLA. Just coming in, getting the chemistry together as a team, we’ll be able to connect better for years to come.”
Another noticeable feature among the freshman players through the season’s progression has been the development in their conditioning, a goal that the coaching staff has constantly harped on.
“Overall, we’re bringing (the freshmen) along, but we’re also trying to get their fitness base up,” Ellis said. “And a big part of their improvement has been their fitness base; I think we’re getting there and making headway.”
Cheney hits milestone
At the 62:47 mark of Friday’s match against Arizona, senior Lauren Cheney scored a goal that had multiple implications.
Not only did it give the Bruins a comfortable 2-0 lead, it also bumped Cheney into second place all-time on the UCLA career scoring charts behind Traci Arkenberg.
Her goals over the weekend gave her 143 career points.
It also placed her in a tie for second place all-time with Danesha Adams in career goals with 60.
“It’s such an honor,” Cheney said.
“I know that there have been a lot of great players to come through UCLA. I’m just excited to be in those ranks.”
But as much pleasure as the senior takes in being placed in the record books, it is with equal grace that her teammates accept the opportunity to play in her company.
“I think that it’s amazing,” Bywaters said. “It’s such a privilege to play with Cheney because she is so experienced. Playing alongside of her, I get to learn from her.”
In addition, Cheney was announced last week’s Pac-10 Women’s Soccer Player of the Week on Tuesday, the fourth such selection in her career.
The Bruins will travel north for a two-game road trip, first to take on No. 17 California on Friday before facing No. 1 Stanford on Sunday.