Thursday, October 30, 1997
UCLA to host tournament pitting East vs. West Coast
SOCCER: No. 10 Bruins to face tough competition in this
weekend’s Classic
By Vytas Mazeika
Daily Bruin Staff
The battle of West vs. East will take place this weekend at
Spaulding Field.
Men’s soccer powerhouse Duke, currently ranked No. 3 in the
nation, and the University of Massachusetts Minutemen will travel
westward to participate in this weekend’s UCLA Soccer Classic. They
will face off against Cal State Fullerton and host No. 10 UCLA.
Both the Bruins (13-2) and the Titans (9-7) look forward to
seeing how they stack up against the talented East Coast teams. The
Blue Devils (13-3) and Minutemen (11-5-1) will make their first and
only trip to the West Coast and figure to play an important role in
determining the strength of the regions for NCAA playoff
seeding.
"They’re very important games for us," UCLA head coach Sigi
Schmid said. "We view them like we view most games, with the only
exception that we are looking at this like a little more of a
playoff atmosphere … For us one of the main things (is) that we
have a good comparison for the West, that we have a good comparison
for ourselves, and that we get a better (NCAA playoff)
seeding."
The power comparisons in these inter-regional games are
important, but not quite as important as the playoff caliber
experience provided to the teams. Since all four teams still have a
chance to reach the playoffs, this will be a good test for the
coaches and the players.
"(The tournament) helps us to know where we are at this late in
the season," Schmid said. "When teams get ready for the playoffs,
the main difference is that they play much better defense. They are
much more concentrated. They are much more focused. The ability to
break down a defense that is organized is something that every team
needs to work on and playing good teams this late allows us to work
on that."
Duke comes in as the highest ranked team of the four, but the
Blue Devils lost their last match to No. 6 Virginia. The telling
statistic from that match is the 50 fouls called in the game.
Schmid is quick to point out that the East Coast game is much more
physical than the West Coast game.
A comparison in fouls could be made with the UCLA-Fullerton
match earlier this month in which the Titans were victorious 3-1. A
total of 39 fouls were committed in that game – 11 fewer than in
the Duke-Virginia game.
But no matter how the games are played, the matches this weekend
should prove to be rather entertaining. Fullerton head coach Al
Mistri believes that the UCLA Soccer Classic is easily one of the
best soccer tournaments held each year in the United States.
"We are honored to be part of this, first and foremost," Mistri
said. "The quality of the play up there is phenomenal and I think
we seldom get a chance to play against a team with the caliber of
Duke. Clearly for our program and our athletes to see the level
that we want to achieve, especially from another region, is of
utmost importance."
* * *
Friday’s matches:
Duke vs. Fullerton – 5:30 p.m.
University of Massachusettes vs. UCLA – 8 p.m.
Sunday’s matches:
UMass vs. Fullerton – 10:30 a.m.
Duke vs. UCLA – 1 p.m.UCLA Bruins (13-2)
ranking: No. 10
season so far:
The Bruins have had solid defense and goaltending this season –
they have only allowed nine goals in 15 games. After an upset loss
to the University of Alabama, Birmingham, UCLA went on a nine game
winning streak. Cal State Fullerton broke the Bruins’ 20-game
conference winning streak.
player to watch:
Junior forward Seth George (No. 9) leads the team in both goals
(11) and points (26). George has had a breakthrough season as a
starter, after being known as a "super-sub" last season. The Bruins
have yet to lose a game in which George scores a goal.
at the helm:
Coach Sigi Schmid is in his 18th year as coach of the Bruins. He
has two NCAA championships (’85, ’90) under his belt, and has
compiled a record of 296-59-33.
prediction:
The Bruins figure to defeat the Minutemen and then will play the
premier match of the weekend in a very tight, physical duel against
Duke.
Duke Blue Devils (13-3)
ranking: No. 3
season so far:
The Blue Devils’ losses have come at the hands of three top-10
teams – No. 1 Indiana (1-2), No. 10 Maryland (1-2 in OT) and No. 6
Virginia (0-2). Duke has shut out their opponents in more than half
of their victories (seven of 13) and figure to be a playoff team
when all is said and done.
player to watch:
Junior midfielder Jay Heaps (No. 7) is tied for the team lead
with 28 points and has 29 career goals entering this weekend. He
was the ACC and Soccer America freshman of the year in 1995 when he
scored 15 goals.
at the helm:
John Rennie is in his 19th year as coach of Duke. He has one
NCAA championship (’86) – the last year that Duke participated in
the UCLA Soccer Classic. His career record at Duke is
273-97-23.
prediction:
The Blue Devils should not have much trouble in downing
Fullerton before the big showdown on Sunday against the Bruins.
University of Massachusetts Minutemen (11-5-1)
ranking: unranked
season so far:
The Minutemen have four of their five losses coming from the
Atlantic-10. At one point they ranked in the top 25, but a two-game
losing streak at the end of September and a three-game losing
streak in mid-October placed the Minutemen on the playoff
bubble.
player to watch:
Senior forward Mike Butler (No. 6) just became the all-time
leading scorer for the Minutemen with two late goals in a game vs.
La Salle last weekend. He has 95 career points – including 12 goals
this season.
at the helm:
In his seventh year as coach of UMass, Sam Koch has resurrected
a team slated for elimination due to budget cuts and has amassed a
career record of 79-43-13.
prediction:
UMass will struggle against the Bruins before facing Fullerton
on what could be their best chance for a victory this weekend.
CSU Fullerton Titans (9-7)
ranking: unranked
season so far:
The Titans experienced a four-game losing streak from Sept. 19
to Sept. 28 that put a big blemish on their record. But with none
of those losses being conference losses, Fullerton bounced back and
defeated then-No. 3 UCLA 3-1 before 4,762 fans at home. With a win
next weekend at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Fullerton controls its
own destiny to reach the playoffs.
player to watch:
Senior forward Sheldon Thomas (No. 8) is a transfer student who
scored 17 goals in the 1996 campaign. This season, he once again
leads the team with 24 points and is second with eight goals.
at the helm:
Al Mistri is in his 17th year as coach of Fullerton. He reached
the Final Four in 1993 for the first time in school history and has
compiled a 185-131-28 record during his tenure.
prediction:
Fullerton is the most likely team to lose both games this
weekend, due to their inconsistent play. Then again, the Titans
could prove everyone wrong and win the event.