It’s only a few weeks into the season, but the UCLA
men’s soccer team has already experienced a drought.
Despite high hopes early on, the Bruins’ (4-1-2) offense
has wilted and withered away. In their last two games against
Loyola Marymount and Cal State Fullerton, teams with sub-par
records, UCLA’s offense was only able to muster one goal,
ending both games in a tie.
The Bruins have had their share of shots on goal, but they have
failed to convert their opportunities. In fact, UCLA has averaged
17.1 shots on goal to their opponents’ 8.3. Nevertheless, the
team has only managed to average a meager 1.31 goals per
contest.
“We’ve had some close games, but the reality and
truth of it is we’re very capable of scoring,”
first-year coach Jorge Salcedo said. “Sometimes teams go
through droughts.
“Ours are now, better now than later.”
Even though the team is compensating for the loss of five
seniors and has had to integrate seven freshmen into a program that
expects nothing less than an NCAA title, senior midfielder Mike
Enfield strongly believes the team is meshing well.
“We’re doing pretty good now, and we’re
starting to gel,” Enfield said. “But I know our team is
capable of much better than that. I feel the talent that our team
possesses will show much more in the games to come.”
One of the bright spots offensively so far this season, Enfield
has exhibited his deftness and ability to lead the team. In the
past three weeks, Enfield scored four goals, surpassing his career
total of three before this season. During this span, Enfield, who
is on the M.A.C. Hermann Trophy watch list, was named Pac-10
Men’s Soccer Player of the Week for Sept. 14-20 after he
scored a pair of the goals in the Bruins’ win over Cal State
Northridge.
The multiple-goal performance was the first of Enfield’s
career.
“Mike will try and do whatever is asked of him,”
Salcedo said. “We moved him up front and he scored goals; we
moved him to the midfield and he created goals for others. As a
player he will always give his best and his best is always
good.”
The Bruins have also gotten a boost from some of their
underclassmen, who have performed exceptionally well in the early
part of the season. Two of the top three leading scorers on the
team are freshmen.
Forward Kamani Hill, a freshman from Berkeley, has lived up to
the hype placed on him, collecting two goals and two assists early
on. Fellow freshman Richard Flores has also provided an offensive
punch by scoring two goals. Sophomore Chad Barrett leads the team
in assists with four.
With Pac-10 play beginning this weekend, UCLA will need more
stellar performances from Enfield and its young players for its
offense to come to life again.