UCLA Defeats Washington In Double Overtime
Soccer News: Jose Hernandez netted the game-winning goal in double overtime to lift UCLA to the road victory over Washington, 3-2, on Sunday night at Husky Soccer Stadium. Hernandez scored off of a rebound on a penalty kick attempt for his second goal of the game and his second overtime winner this season.
In the first half, UCLA (5-5-0) managed to produce a few good chances in an otherwise uneventful opening 45 minutes of play. The Bruins best chance of the half came when Jackson Yueill banged a free-kick from just outside the penalty area off of the left post in the 20th minute. Then, in the 39th minute, Yueill found Hernandez running in behind the Husky backline for another good chance, but Hernandez’ attempt went sliding just wide of the right post, keeping the Bruins off of the board in the first half.
Scoreless at the break, UCLA was out-shooting Washington, 8-7, and had earned three corners to the Huskies’ one.
Just two minutes into the second half, UCLA scored the opening goal on a penalty kick, which proved to be the recurring theme of the evening. After Nathan Smith was taken down in the right side of the box, Hernandez stepped to the spot and scored with ease on a chip to the upper right corner of the frame to put UCLA up, 1-0.
Washington (5-2-3) would tie it up on a penalty kick of its own in the 75th minute. As a cross was flying into a crowded box, Edgar Contreras was caught dragging down a Husky attacker near the front of the net to garner a penalty kick. Ian Lange stepped up and took the kick confidently to bring the score level at one with 15 minutes left in regulation.
Just three minutes later, Washington took the lead on a well-taken free-kick off of the foot of Justin Schmidt from about 25 yards out. The junior defender bent a left-footed drive around the wall and off of the hands of a diving Pepe Barroso-Silva to give the Huskies a late one-goal advantage.
Going from leading by a goal to trailing by a goal in just three minutes forced the Bruins to fight for a late equalizer. With UCLA pushing for the tying goal, Seyi Adekoya charged down the right side of the pitch and was taken down in an identical spot as Smith in the 81st minute to give UCLA its second penalty kick of the match. The freshman Yueill blasted a hard shot into the left side of the net, delivering the Bruins their late equalizer to force extra time for the third consecutive match.
Following a scoreless first overtime session, the Bruins and Huskies headed to a second overtime period looking to break the 2-2 tie. With just three minutes left in the second overtime, a long ball was sent from the right side of the field into the box in search of Adekoya. The Bruin striker was knocked down by the charging Washington goalkeeper who deflected the ball towards an oncoming Hernandez. The freshman midfielder then corralled the ball and dribbled to within three yards of the goal where he let a shot fly. His shot was stopped by Husky defender Quentin Pearson, but was ruled a handball, resulting in UCLA’s third penalty kick of the match. Hernandez’ penalty kick attempt was saved by Ryan Herman, but Hernandez quickly rushed in and followed up his shot by kicking the ball into the empty net to give the Bruins their first Pac-12 win, 3-2.
Overall, UCLA out-shot Washington, 21-16, and earned one more corner than the Huskies. Making two saves, Barroso-Silva earned his second career win, while Herman finished with five saves in the loss.
UCLA is now 5-0-1 in its last six meetings with Washington. Additionally, the Bruin win moves their record to 27-5-5 in Pac-12 Conference road matches since 2008.
UCLA returns home to take on San Diego State on Monday, October 12 at 7:00pm PT at Drake Stadium. The game will be broadcast live on the Pac-12 Networks and can be heard live on uclabruins.com. Tickets for all home matches can be purchased online or by calling 310-UCLA-WIN.
Photo Credit: Katie Meyers
