UCLA women’s soccer is now only one game shy of making it to the final four.
But the Bruins might not have gotten this far if not for their offense – particularly the clutch play of Anika Rodriguez.
The redshirt sophomore forward has scored the game-winning goals in the past two games against Northwestern and No. 3 seed Virginia (13-6-4).
The Cavaliers (12-8-3) denied the No. 2 seed Bruins (18-2-2) from advancing in the tournament in 2014, when Virginia took UCLA down 2-1 during the quarterfinals. Rodriguez kept her team from suffering a similar fate Sunday, firing a shot into the goal off an assist by freshman forward Ashley Sanchez for a 2-1 victory.
[Related: Women’s soccer defeats Virginia 2-1 in NCAA tournament win]
The Wildcats and Cavaliers both focused on their defensive play in order to counter the Bruin attackers. Neither defense was able to stop Rodriguez, however, who has logged 43 shots over the course of the season, and ranks 10th and seventh in the Pac-12 for points and assists respectively.
Rodriguez is currently second on the team in goals scored behind junior forward Hailie Mace.
UCLA has relied on an attack-heavy strategy to overpower its competition, which was apparent in the win Friday night against Northwestern when Bruins outshot the Wildcats 28-2.
Although those shots only translated into a single goal, coach Amanda Cromwell said that 28 attacks would usually yield three or four goals against most goalkeepers.
“We didn’t think it was going to take that long to break the seal, so to speak, and get one in,” Cromwell said. “We were a bit unlucky. We created so many dangerous opportunities.”
Despite only managing three goals in the past two games, the 2017 UCLA team has been successful in using an aggressive offense to put pressure on other teams.
UCLA has outshot its opponents 348 to 164 this year, earning an average of 2.32 goals per game in comparison to 0.77 for its competitors.
“Our offense was clicking, we were working really well together,” Mace said after the win against Northwestern. “I think we knew we were going to score in the first overtime because we have the past few times we’ve been in overtime.”
The Bruins have also dramatically outdone other teams in terms of assists, with a total of 53 compared to only 16 for their opponents.
“I think we were able to connect our passes in the midfield and then get it out wide and get some crosses,” Rodriguez said Friday. “Those were our best chances.”
Cromwell said her attackers have been able to adjust to the defensive tactics that the Wildcats and Cavaliers implemented against UCLA.
“I think we did a good job (against Virginia) trying to get around the outside, getting into some corners and being dangerous on crosses,” Cromwell said. “I think we wore them down a bit … because of our speed all over the field.”
UCLA will play one final home game against No. 4 seed Princeton (16-2-1) in the quarterfinals Friday. The Tigers were ranked 13th in the United Soccer Coaches polls, but upset No. 1 seed North Carolina to face the host team at Drake Stadium.
“I’m speechless right now,” Rodriguez said after her goal against Virginia. “You saw us fight on the field – to get to the elite eight after losing last year in the Sweet 16 is huge for us. I just think that we want to be in that last game.”