The victories have not come easily for the No. 12 UCLA
men’s soccer team this season. It has had to fight hard for
every one of its four wins.
The fight will continue this weekend as the Bruins begin their
quest for a third-straight Pac-10 Championship title at Drake
Stadium Friday against Oregon State and Sunday against
Washington.
Though Washington (6-3-1) is only ranked No. 24 in the country
and Oregon State (5-4-1) was picked to finish last in the Pac-10 in
the coaches’ poll at the beginning of the season, coach Jorge
Salcedo has reiterated to his Bruins that they must come prepared
to play.
He does not want the team to feel too confident, regardless of
the fact that UCLA (4-1-2) swept both teams last year.
In fact, UCLA has defeated the Beavers in its last four
meetings, the most recent game being a 5-0 victory last
November.
“We know every game in conference is a tough one,”
Salcedo said. “I’m sure they’ll come in with
confidence and we’ll have to be prepared to battle and match
their intensity level and find a way to win. We have to respect our
opponents but not fear them.”
In order to win, the Bruins are going to have to find a way to
score. So far, UCLA has edged its opponents by a narrow goal margin
of 10-6.
In the last two games combined, both of which resulted in a tie,
the Bruins managed to score just one goal.
In contrast, Oregon State leads the Pac-10 in shots, goals and
assists and is in the midst of a five-game unbeaten streak, and
have recorded victories over then-No. 25 St. Bonaventure and No. 21
Rhode Island.
A key member of the Beavers who the Bruins will have to contain
will be sophomore forward Robbie Findley, who leads the Pac-10 in
scoring with five goals.
One of the adjustments Salcedo made in the past weeks was moving
Bruin senior Mike Enfield from midfielder to forward in order to
create more scoring opportunities. It has paid off.
In his first game at the forward position, against Northridge on
September 17, Enfield scored a pair of goals.
“[The switch] creates some good opportunities from deeper
in the field,” Salcedo said. “We’ve been really
happy with that.”
Sunday’s game against Washington presents an even larger
challenge for the Bruins. The Huskies present a balanced attack,
with eight different players scoring Washington’s 15 goals
this season.
At the UNLV Invitational two weeks ago, the Huskies beat
then-No. 13 Creighton 2-1, a team which the Bruins subsequently
lost 3-2 at the same tournament.
The Huskies have also proven they cannot be overlooked with a
victory over then-No. 5 Connecticut.
Because of their less-than-stellar start, Salcedo and the Bruins
feel up to the challenge and are eager to begin conference
play.
“The guys are excited to play [tonight],” Salcedo
said. “We’re ready.”