The UCLA Bruins Host the Utah Utes for a Breast Cancer Awareness Game
Second-ranked UCLA (11-0-2, 4-0-1 in the Pac-12) returns to Westwood this week for a Pac-12 matchup against Utah on Thursday, Oct. 12 at 8 p.m. PT.
It will also be UCLA’s annual Breast Cancer Awareness match. Fans who wear pink will be granted free admission.
The match will be televised live on the Pac-12 Network and can also be heard over the internet at UCLA Bruins. Tickets are $8 for adults and for $5 youth 12 and under.
For the first time in six weeks, UCLA fell out of the No. 1 position following a 2-2 tie at Arizona. The Bruins are now the second-ranked team in the United Soccer Coaches national rankings after a six-week stint at the top and are also No. 2 in both the Top Drawer Soccer and Soccer America polls. UCLA’s last foray at the top of the rankings came in 2014 when the Bruins spent the entire regular season ranked No. 1.
MACE NAMED PAC-12 OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF WEEK AGAIN
Junior Hailie Mace earned her second-straight Pac-12 honor of the season and her third of the season, being named the Offensive Player of the Week. She is also leading the league with three weekly Pac-12 honors. Mace totaled three more goals on the road at Arizona State and Arizona. She has scored six goals in her last four games.
MIDSEASON HONORS
UCLA had a total of nine players honored by Top Drawer Soccer this week on its Top 100 Midseason list. Sophomore Jessie Fleming earned the number one overall spot after being ranked No. 4 during the preseason. Junior Hailie Mace went from unranked to inside the top-10 earning the No. 8 ranking.
While sophomore Kaiya McCullough came in at No. 61 and Anika Rodriguez landed at No. 89. Five freshmen earned Midseason freshman honors with three in the top 10 – Ashley Sanchez (No. 2), Delanie Sheehan (No. 4) and Karina Rodriguez (No. 10). Viviana Villacorta earned the No. 60 ranking and Olivia Athens came in at No. 77.
SCOUTING THE UTES
Utah comes into Thursday’s match with a 0-4-1 record in conference play and are 5-6-2 overall on the season. The Utes are currently in a four-game losing streak and last earned a win on Sept. 15 against Kansas at home, 2-1. Hailey Skolmoski leads Utah with seven goals on the season and is fourth in the conference.
Right behind her is Paola Van der Veen with six goals. The duo are tied for the team lead with 15 points, which rank sixth in the Pac-12. In net, Carly Nelsonhas made all 13 starts for the Utes and has a 1.30 goal-against average with 45 saves.
LAST WEEK’S ROUNDUP
The top-ranked Bruins made a roadtrip through Arizona last week and came home with a 1-0-1 mark. UCLA began the week with a convincing 3-0 win at Arizona State for head coach Amanda Cromwell’s 300th career victory. Hailie Mace scored twice, and Anika Rodriguez capped the game off with a goal in the 54th minute.
In Sunday’s match at Arizona, UCLA jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first half with goals from Mace and Rodriguez, but the Wildcats tied the match in the second half and were able to keep the Bruins off the board in overtime for the 2-2 draw.
NATIONAL TEAMS
UCLA has a plethora of national team players on its 2017 squad, including four who have earned call-ups to the full national team – Fleming (Canada), Teagan Micah (Australia) and freshmen Ashley Sanchez (U.S.) and Kennedy Faulknor (Canada). Three played with the U.S. U-23 National Team in July – Sanchez, Zoey Goralski and Hailie Mace. Karina Rodriguez and Viviana Villacorta have played with the Under-20s this year, and Kaiya McCullough and Delanie Sheehan have played with the Under-19s in 2017. Eleven more Bruins have played with various U.S. Youth National Teams in their career – Olivia Athens (U-18), Lauren Brzykcy (U-17), Marley Canales (2016 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup), Chloe Castaneda (U-17), MacKenzie Cerda (U-18), Sunny Dunphy (U-19), Chloe Hemingway (U-18), Gabrielle Matulich (U-20), Jacey Pederson (U-19), Anika Rodriguez (U-17), and Claire Winter (U-15). In addition, Siri Ervik played with the Norwegian U-19 National Team, and Julia Hernandez played with the Spanish U-17 National Team.
Source and Photo Credit: UCLA Bruins Women’s Soccer
