Friday, October 9, 1998
Team aims to extend impressive winning streak
PREVIEW: UCLA hasn’t lost at home since 1996; now faces
Stanford, Cal
By Moin Salahuddin
Daily Bruin Contributor
The UCLA men’s soccer team opens the defense of their Mountain
Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) title today versus Stanford. On
Sunday they face California.
The second-ranked Bruins (7-1, 0-0 MPSF) will host the No. 8
Cardinal squad (7-2, 0-0 MPSF) at Spaulding Field at 7:30 p.m. UCLA
will then play the Golden Bears (3-5 overall) at the North Athletic
Field at 2 p.m. Sunday.
UCLA is coming off a 2-1 sudden-death overtime victory over
Loyola Marymount. The Bruins have been on a tear as of late,
winning their last six matches. UCLA had held the opposition
scoreless for a five-game stretch that came to an abrupt end during
their match versus LMU.
Despite ending their streak of scoreless opposition, the Bruins
are continuing another impressive streak. UCLA has won its last 23
consecutive regular season home games (27 overall), which is
currently the longest streak in the NCAA. The Bruins rank second
all-time, tied with Virginia (twice, 1983-84 and 1987-88) and
Philadelphia Textile (1968-72). Tulsa (1988-92) holds the record
with 39 consecutive home wins. The Bruins have not lost a home
match since Sept. 22, 1996 – when they lost 2-1 in overtime to
California.
Stanford has a talented soccer team that may give UCLA a
hard-fought battle. The Cardinal, coached by Bobby Clarke, has
proven to be one of the best defensive teams in the nation the past
two seasons. In 1998, Stanford has allowed just four goals and has
shut out seven opponents. Sophomore goalkeeper Adam Zapala holds a
goals-against average of 0.45, third-best among MPSF starters,
behind Oregon State’s Bryan Hill (0.29) and UCLA’s Nick Rimando
(0.40). Offensively, the Cardinal are led by Simon Elliott and A.J.
Sauer.
UCLA owns the overall series lead (22-1-3) and has won the last
three matches in a row.
The Bruins defeated Stanford 1-0 last season in the MPSF
Championship game at Spaulding Field behind a penalty kick goal by
Pete Vagenas. Stanford’s last win in the series came in 1987 by a
score of 1-0 at home.
Cal is a struggling squad, due to inexperience and an
overabundance of youth. Coached by Mark Mallon, the Golden Bears
have been tested early and will once again be pushed to the limits
in their contest with the Bruins.
UCLA leads the overall series against Cal (20-5-3) and won the
last meeting 4-0 in the MPSF Championship game in 1996. However,
Cal did defeat the Bruins at UCLA earlier in 1996, the last time
the Bruins have lost at home.
So far this season, only two teams have scored on the Bruins –
South Carolina and Loyola Marymount. The Bruins have shut out six
opponents this season and, dating back to last season, 11 of their
last 14. The Bruins have allowed just three goals all season,
giving UCLA an MPSF-leading team goals-against average of 0.36.
Meanwhile, the Bruin offense has scored 25 goals, an MPSF-leading
average of 3.13 per game. With the potent offense and formidable
defense that UCLA displays as a lethal one-two combination, the
Bruins hope to claim a sweep of the Bay Area schools here in
Westwood.
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