The NCAA Tournament draw party Monday afternoon was a big
celebration for the men’s soccer team, who received the No. 8
overall seed, getting a first-round bye and the home-field
advantage in the second and third rounds.
UCLA (10-5-4) will host either Harvard (13-4) or Binghamton
(9-6-5) in the second round on Nov. 15.
If the Bruins win their first game in the single-elimination
tournament, then they will likely host No. 9 Clemson (12-4-2), who
also has a first-round bye as one of the top 16 seeds.
The Bruins’ position in the tournament was up in the air
until the draw party as they finished a discouraging fourth in the
Pac-10 and failed to pile up as many wins as in years past. But it
was the Bruins’ strength of schedule that ultimately gave
them such a high seed, entering the tournament as the top Pac-10
team with Cal closest at 13th.
“Ten wins isn’t the norm for us,” Salcedo
said. “We’re usually (getting) anywhere from 12 to 15
wins on the season, but (this year) they were all quality wins. A
lot of people were saying we’re fortunate (to be eighth), but
you (also) need to look at it in that these guys earned the eight
seed because they weren’t afraid to play against
anybody.”
UCLA had a very tough schedule, including road trips to Virginia
and Maryland, who are seeded fourth and fifth respectively, as well
as playing at San Diego State and UC Santa Barbara, who both
received tournament bids.
Coming into the draw, the Bruins were unsure of whether their
tough opponents would be enough to help their campaign for a
first-round bye.
“We were pretty excited (to be) No. 8,” senior
goalkeeper Eric Reed said. “A lot of guys were surprised.
We’ve tended to not get as high a spot (as we
should).”
The home-field advantage is especially big for seniors Reed and
defender Kiel McClung, who will get at least one more chance to
play at Drake Stadium.
For the entire team, it means they can keep banking on
home-field advantage.
“It’s huge for us because we have a lot of success
at home,” junior Greg Folk said.
The Bruins’ next home game, against either Harvard or
Binghamton, is all the team is focusing on right now. Many people
outside the program expect the Bruins to breeze past their
second-round match to take on Clemson, but Salcedo’s team
remembers what happened last season.
“The lesson I’ve learned in the first two years that
I’ve been here (is) you can’t overlook anybody,”
Salcedo said. “Last year we overlooked SMU.”
After getting a first-round bye in the 2005 tournament, the
Bruins fell in their first game to Southern Methodist to take an
early exit in front of a home crowd.
“I got text messages and e-mails from friends saying,
“˜I can’t wait for the Clemson game.’ But we know
within ourselves that it’s the Harvard or the Binghamton
game,” Salcedo said. “There isn’t anything
else.”
The Bruins have eight days before they’ll get a chance to
exorcize last year’s demons and have switched up their
practice schedule to prepare. Salcedo gave his team today off and
will have his players train in three-day stretches with a day off
in between to give the team some extra rest before the
tournament.
Late in the season the Bruins have had trouble coming out flat
and putting themselves in a hole against opponents. With the
playoffs about to begin, the Bruins are stressing strong starts in
practice.
“It’s something we’re gonna have to work
on,” Reed said. “We’re not going to be perfect
all of a sudden.”
Helping spark the Bruins early in their last game against San
Diego on Sunday (a 3-1 win) was a position change. Salcedo moved
freshman midfielder Kyle Nakazawa up front with good results,
noting that there was a good chance the same move could be made on
Wednesday night for the Bruins’ playoff run.