Bruins prepare for men’s soccer season with many returning players
Junior forward Abu Danladi, along with Seyi Adekoya and sophomore midfielder Jose Hernandez provided the spark to UCLA’s offense in 2015, and aim to excite again. (Daily Bruin file photo)
By Grant Sugimura
Aug. 15, 2016 12:30 a.m.
Having an 11-9-1 record, UCLA’s first second-round exit since 2012 and only one player picked in the MLS SuperDraft – the lowest total since 2011 – would indicate that men’s soccer had a mediocre 2015 campaign.
The top-ranked team heading into the season, the Bruins were unable to garner any sort of sustained success due, in part, to injuries and issues on the defensive side of the ball.
Despite last year’s relative struggles, UCLA is still ranked in the top 20 of many preseason polls for this fall.
This new season is one in which many of the players remained on the team, with the Bruins only losing five seniors – albeit, one of those seniors being star defender Javan Torre.
However, UCLA retains junior forwards Abu Danladi and Seyi Adekoya and sophomore midfielder Jose Hernandez. This trio was a stalwart of the Bruins’ high-powered offense, one that ranked second in the nation with 2.24 goals per game.
Hernandez in particular showed flashes of greatness. The Pac-12 Freshman of the Year started 20 games for UCLA and led the team in points.
The freshman midfielder was a prolific scorer as he came within one goal of tying the school record for goals in a season as a freshman.
On the defensive side, redshirt senior Juan Cervantes will return to the goal as one of the team’s many goalkeeper options.
Cervantes won the starting job last season away from then-redshirt freshman Pepe Barroso Silva and freshmen Dakota Havlick and Cole Martinez after coach Jorge Salcedo tried to replace a former three-year starter in Earl Edwards Jr., who graduated the year prior.
This means that UCLA will have a newly minted veteran in the goal with plenty of young-blood to back him up if this season does not pan out for the redshirt senior.
Thus, the Bruins will return with the same pieces to the puzzle, with a rough season under their belt, in an attempt to find a cleaner solution towards a successful season.
Beyond the new possibilities in the field, UCLA soccer has reason to be excited about the field itself.
In the spring, UCLA Athletics announced a $5 million dollar donation from the Annenberg Foundation that will go toward building a new soccer specific stadium at North Athletic Field.
Construction is planned to begin in the fall of 2016 for the stadium that will seat 3,000 and be an upgrade from the current field, Drake Stadium.
All things considered, the fall of 2016 looks to be a good time for UCLA soccer. With less pressure due to a lower preseason ranking and a chip on their shoulder from a season that was less than spectacular, the now-experienced Bruins will look to turn things around in a major way.
