Women’s soccer duo showcases connection developed over years
Redshirt senior Anika Rodriguez assisted both goals in No. 18 UCLA women’s soccer’s win over No. 19 Washington State. Rodriguez suffered a season-ending injury last year and made her first start this season Oct. 6. (Alice Naland/Daily Bruin staff)
By Cassidy Hunt
Oct. 28, 2019 10:59 p.m.
The Bruins’ tag team is back in full force.
Junior forward Ashley Sanchez and redshirt senior forward Anika Rodriguez combined to score one of the Bruins’ two goals in No. 18 UCLA women’s soccer’s (11-4-1, 5-3-0 Pac-12) win over No. 19 Washington State (10-5-1, 3-4-1) on Sunday afternoon. Since Rodriguez’s return to the Bruins’ rotation following a season-ending injury in 2018, the pair have been working in tandem in the UCLA attack.
“(Sanchez) and I have been playing with each other for longer than the time we’ve spent (at UCLA),” Rodriguez said. “Now, I know (Sanchez)’s voice really, really well. When I hear (Sanchez) scream for me, I can always tell when she is wide open and ready for me.”
Sanchez and Rodriguez have been competing on the same pitch for close to seven years. Sanchez appeared as a guest player on Rodriguez’s club team several times every year for almost four years before the pair met again at UCLA. Rodriguez said she and Sanchez always play well together on the front line.
“I don’t ever need or want to be a selfish player out there,” Rodriguez said. “If I know (Sanchez) is wide open, I know I trust (Sanchez) to finish it.”
This season, Sanchez has recorded seven assists, 19 points, 47 shots and 29 shots on goal – all good for the top spot on the UCLA squad. The junior posted a season-high six shots against the Cougars.
Sanchez is second on the team for goals scored, with six, and has scored one game-winning goal this season in UCLA’s first match of the season against Iowa State.
Rodriguez did not play in the Bruins’ first four matches, but she has seen her minutes steadily increase since early September, when she returned to the pitch for the first time since October 2018.
The redshirt senior assisted in both of the Bruins’ goals against the Cougars, including a pass to Sanchez that Rodriguez tunneled through the legs of a Washington State defender while being chased by a second Cougar defender.
Rodriguez set season-bests in shots, shots on goal, assists and minutes played against Washington State on Sunday. Her assists were her second and third of the season.
Freshman forward Mia Fishel said the duo’s ability to link up is encouraging for the Bruins’ progress in the attacking third.
“It’s always good to see either one of them up front,” Fishel said. “You know that they’re going to do something good on the ball, and you just want to be there to support them or follow up their shot.”
Coach Amanda Cromwell said she is eager to see what else the duo will accomplish in the remainder of the 2019 season.
“They are a great tandem,” Cromwell said. “They’re used to playing together and connecting for goals, so I’m hoping more of that happens in the near future.”
