This post was updated Oct. 18 at 9:06 p.m.
Seven goals. A disallowed breakthrough. A penalty-kick equalizer. And 90 minutes in which neither side seemed willing to surrender.
No. 10 UCLA men’s soccer (7-2-4, 3-2-2 Big Ten) fell 4-3 to No. 18 Wisconsin (8-2-3, 2-2-3) on Friday at McClimon Track/Soccer Complex in its first of two away matches in the Midwest.
In Madison, momentum never stayed with one side for long.
The Bruins weathered the Badgers’ blows, clawed their way back into the fight twice and kept their Big Ten rival within reach. But every comeback demanded another, and the Badgers landed the final strike, handing coach Ryan Jorden’s squad an upset 4-3 loss to end its four-game winning streak.
Following a three-game homestand, the loss was UCLA’s second of the year after a defeat by another Big Ten opponent, Rutgers, in September. Friday’s match also marked the most goals the Bruins have conceded this season – the next closest being three from the Scarlet Knights in their away loss the month prior.
“You have to have a whole bunch of guys who are going to try to win every first ball, and we didn’t do that,” Jorden said. “As a result, they stack on top two or three moments of putting the ball in your box, and you got to repel and repel when you probably could have been able to solve the initial problem.”
As the cold air hung over Madison, the Bruins and Badgers settled into a contest that grew more heated with every goal, lunging tackle, collision and counterattack.
The Bruins struck first.
In the 11th minute, junior midfielder Jaime Amaro converted a set piece earned from a Wisconsin foul, finding the back of the net for his sixth goal of the season – a mark that sits second on the team. But the advantage lasted less than nine minutes before Wisconsin forward Roman Eisa headed in an equalizer off an assist from defender Isaac Brown-Samper.
The teams continued to trade punches as the physical domination UCLA displayed after Amaro’s goal faded in a flurry of unsuccessful moves, including a header from senior forward Oliver Roche that knocked off the crossbar.
Still, the Westwood squad seemed to seize control when fifth-year forward Diego Castano, who came off the bench in the 31st minute, put the Bruins ahead 2-1 – only for a consequential push in the play leading up to the goal to erase it off the board.
“It’s small moments in the game,” Jorden said. “A goal you score that gets called back, a moment when you’re in the perfect position to score and we miss the target – it’s small moments that make the difference.”
Wisconsin capitalized on the reversal. Moments after the goal was called back, forward Markie Hrvojevic put the Badgers ahead 2-1 on a second ball, shifting the pressure back onto the Bruins.
But Castano had another answer. Just 17 seconds after Hrvojevic’s goal, the 5-foot-7 forward found the net again with an assist from junior defender David de la Vibora to pull UCLA level at 2-2.
“In the beginning of the season, we were struggling a bit,” Amaro said. “We are starting to have a great connection – Castano scoring again back-to-back. Me scoring that free kick. Oli (Roche), Zach (junior midfielder Zach Neuls) in the front line.”
The first half of play foreshadowed the aggressive, attack-heavy game that continued as the Bruins recorded six shots to the Badgers’ four – and five fouls to their opponents’ two – through the frame.
UCLA’s reprieve did not last into the second half.
In the 46th minute, a takedown in the box awarded a penalty to the Badgers. As sophomore goalkeeper Ryan Tiltack dove the wrong way, Wisconsin midfielder Matthew Zachemski scored, putting his team ahead 3-2 just after the break.
Once again, UCLA had to climb out of a hole. The Bruins had already shown they could absorb a punch and return one with their attack.
Now, they had to do it again.
“The offense played their part,” said senior defender Tre Wright. “They showed up. They got the job done.”
And, again, Castano delivered another strike, launching the ball into the upper right corner of the net on a penalty kick.
His second goal of the night to tie the game 3-3 gave UCLA another surge of life – making this his second game in a row recording a brace. His success off the bench seemed to suggest the Bruins still had teeth.
Just when it looked like Wisconsin had the game in its grasp, Castano, UCLA’s leading scorer with seven goals, helped drag the team back into the fight as tensions escalated – only magnified when Wisconsin midfielder Joon Han collided with the referee, prompting a reaction from the home squad’s coach Neil Jones that elicited a yellow card.
But UCLA couldn’t make its attack hold up on the other end, and defender Ellis Jones scored the opposing team’s fourth goal. The Badgers were back in front 4-3, leaving the Bruins with another deficit to erase – and about 15 minutes to do it.
The Bruins kept on pressing while the Badgers dominated possession. Despite this, UCLA finished with 13 shots to Wisconsin’s 10, putting six attempts on target to its opponent’s four. Yet the numbers could not make up for the goals UCLA conceded.
“We could have scored five,” Jorden said. “But, at the end of it, if you concede four goals, especially on the road, it’s hard to win.”
The tension that had simmered throughout the match eventually spilled over into a late scuffle, and yellow cards punctuated a matchup that grew increasingly physical. UCLA finished the match with 11 fouls to Wisconsin’s six.
Challenges grew sharper and space between comeback and defeat narrowed with every passing second. UCLA spent the night refusing to stay down, yet the unrelenting clock yielded no more rounds of reset. While the goals from Amaro and Castano had been enough to keep the Bruins in the fight, they could not prevent the Badgers from pulling ahead.
“We have three (Big Ten) games remaining, and we know the importance of being in the top in the regular season to make a tournament. … We need to be aware of that, of those mistakes, and not make it again,” Amaro said.
Each time the Bruins clawed back, the Badgers forced them to start over.
In Madison, the Bruins proved again that they could trade blows with an elite opponent. They answered goals, absorbed setbacks and kept the match within reach until the final stretch – even leading the game in shots. But the Badgers did not need to dominate every exchange – only triumph in the last one.
UCLA’s comeback ran out of time, and its four-game winning streak ended in a one-goal loss. The team will face off against Northwestern on Monday in Evanston – its final away match of the regular season.
“This loss hurts,” Wright said. “It fuels a new fire under the team to go and win out the regular season. I think that’s the best thing we can do. Everything’s going to be a dogfight now.”
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