KELSEY RETTING The men’s soccer team will be competing in
the Pacific Soccer Classic against South Carolina at Drake Stadium
on Sunday.
By Jon Corwin
Daily Bruin Contributor
In what could turn out to be the deciding factor in the UCLA
men’s soccer team’s quest for an NCAA Tournament bid,
the Bruins host the 16th annual Pacific Soccer Classic this weekend
at Drake Stadium.
Winner of the last four Classics, UCLA (6-6-2, 2-2-0 Pac-10) is
facing pivotal games against St. Mary’s and No. 12 South
Carolina. Cal State Fullerton rounds out the field of four, but
will not play the host Bruins.
With a .500 record at this point in the campaign, every game
becomes a must-win for the inexperienced UCLA squad.
“We have to win these two upcoming games,” UCLA
sophomore defenseman Alex Yi said, “for there to be a
definite chance of us going to the postseason, we can’t lose
again.”
Friday, the Bruins will face St. Mary’s (5-5-1), who have
never beaten UCLA. Although the Bruins have won the first six
contests between the two schools, the Gaels put up a fight last
year in Westwood, leading for much of the game before falling 3-2.
St. Mary’s is led offensively by Los Angeles native Juan
Lopez with four goals on the year. They have been relying on
goalkeeper Kellan Wilson’s solid 1.2 goals against average to
keep them in games.
But the tougher test will come against NCAA Tournament bound
South Carolina on Sunday. The Gamecocks sport three players with
double-digit points scored and have beaten several top-ranked
opponents this year.
MEN’S SOCCER vs. Friday 3 p.m. Drake Stadium
vs. Sunday 2 p.m. Drake Stadium
UCLA head coach Todd Saldaña is worried about his team
overlooking St. Mary’s in anticipation of a tough South
Carolina team. The Bruins have been plagued by defeats to lesser
known regional opponents this year, with losses to UC Irvine and
Loyola Marymount.
“We can’t overlook St. Mary’s and at the same
time raise the level of our play against South Carolina, a Top 10
NCAA playoff team, all in the same weekend,” Saldaña
said.
South Carolina’s leading scorer, sophomore forward Ryan
Daley, has seven goals and 19 points on the year for a team that is
averaging over two goals per game.
The UCLA offense has struggled this year to convert shots on net
into goals.
“We need to keep creating chances, and we’re good
enough that eventually the luck will start going our way,”
junior forward Tim Pierce said.
The Bruins have just four games remaining on the year after this
weekend’s play to prove their NCAA Tournament worth for the
19th year in a row.