This upcoming weekend will serve as a Pac-10 bye for the UCLA men’s soccer team.
How has coach Jorge Salcedo decided his team will spend the weekend?
They will take a road trip to face preseason Creighton in the Bluejays’ backyard of Omaha, Neb.
“The reason I chose to play this difficult non-conference match is because hopefully, if we do have to go on the road in the playoffs “¦ we’ll be battle-tested, and we’ll be ready,” Salcedo said after Thursday’s practice.
Coming off of Sunday’s loss at Stanford, UCLA’s first in more than a month, the No. 7 Bruins (9-2-2, Pac-10 4-1-2) are looking to rebound at the expense of Creighton (6-3-4) and regain their winning momentum with only four games left until the NCAA tournament begins.
As for Sunday’s disappointing 2-0 loss to the Cardinal, a team UCLA defeated 2-0 just a week prior, Salcedo said that the best thing his team can do is to focus on what lies ahead.
“We just have to move forward,” Salcedo said. “That’s behind us now. The guys had a few good days of training, and we’re ready to go to a difficult place to play.”
UCLA senior defender Sean Alvarado reiterated Salcedo’s thoughts, saying that the Bruins must stay focused on the tasks ahead.
“We’re playing a season,” Alvarado said. “We like to take it one game at a time. Yeah, we slipped up a little bit against Stanford, but we have another game, and that’s what we’re looking at.”
Creighton certainly has served as a tough opponent for the Bruins over recent years. Saturday’s match will be the third contest between the two teams in the past six years, with the Bluejays winning in 2004 and the teams tying in 2007.
And Salcedo expects nothing less than a dogfight on Saturday, especially since the Bruins will be in hostile territory.
“Last time we were there it was sold out, and I expect the same thing for this game,” Salcedo said. “Their student sections are right behind the goal, so it’s a great atmosphere and a hostile environment. They’ll definitely be shouting some things at our goalkeeper.”
Alvarado also understands that the Bruins have a target on their backs, regardless of who they play.
“One of the things about playing at UCLA is wherever we go, we find that that team usually has a pretty big crowd there,” Alvarado said. “I feel like they’re going to come at us because if they beat us, that’s good for their record.”
Saturday’s game will take place at 1 p.m. PST at Creighton’s Morrison Stadium in Omaha, Neb. Then the Bruins return home for their final three Pac-10 conference matches of the season, all of which will take place at Drake Stadium.