It’s been 698 days since the Bruins have had a winning streak.
After Friday night, that was no longer the case.
UCLA men’s soccer (2-1) shut out UC Irvine (0-3) 1-0 on Friday night at Anteater Stadium in the Bruins’ first away win of the season and the team’s second straight win.
The clean sheet was the first for the blue and gold in 13 games dating back to the first game of the 2020 season, which saw UCLA notch a 3-0 win over San Francisco. While Friday’s shutout came by a slimmer margin of victory, it put the Bruins on a two-game winning streak, something the team had not accomplished since October 2019.
“I only had to make about two saves, I mean, as a goalie, that’s more than I can ask for,” said senior goalkeeper Justin Garces. “Our effort was great from our guys from the start of the game. We didn’t give them any real chances on goal.”
The Bruins threatened to score in the 15th minute through freshman midfielder Tucker Lepley, whose close-range shot on the right flank was saved by the UC Irvine goalkeeper.
Six minutes later, it was sophomore forward Grayson Doody – once again on the right side – who made a move on a UC Irvine defender to gain some space before sending the ball into the box. The cross found its way to the boot of an Anteater defender who mistakenly tapped it into the net for the Bruins, putting them ahead 1-0.
Late in the second half, it looked like the Bruins were going to concede another late goal, as they had in their first two games of the season. But Ricardo Ibarra’s 76th-minute volley from close range went wide for the Anteaters, keeping the Bruins ahead for the remainder of the match.
“This year everyone just seems very locked in,” said redshirt junior midfielder Jose Sosa. “We have seen a lot of improvements in our squad, and I think we can see that in the run of play.”
Following the away win, UCLA will return to Westwood for a five-game homestand, where it will first play against Cal State Northridge on Monday for a chance to extend its winning streak to three.
