UCLA suffers fifth conference loss

  EDWARD LIN McKinley Tennyson, Jr. slips
past two Huskies in a game against Washington earlier this season.
UCLA lost to Washington Friday, 2-1.

By Brian ThompsonDaily Bruin Reporter

What has transpired in the past four weeks truly must be surreal
for the UCLA men’s soccer team. Simply put, the program just
isn’t used to this.

On a typically chilly autumn night in Seattle Friday, No. 13
UCLA (10-6-0, 1-5-0 Pac-10) faltered in yet another conference
showdown, losing to No. 16 Washington 2-1.

After shooting out of the gate to an 8-0 record, the Bruins have
now lost six of their last eight contests, reaching the six-loss
mark for the first time since 1987.

Their skid has come at the worst possible time. For one thing,
five of those losses are in conference play. UCLA is currently in
the unfamiliar position of “cellar-dweller” in the
Pac-10 with only two games to play.

But perhaps more importantly, this slump has come in the weeks
preceding the NCAA Tournament. Already at the mercy of the
selection committee for an at-large bid due to conference size
restrictions, the Bruins’ chances are looking slimmer by the
week with each loss.

UCLA is in serious danger of not making the tournament. The last
time that happened most of the Bruin players were still in diapers
“”mdash; 1982.

“It’s been frustrating all year,” said
midfielder Shaun Tsakiris. “We’ve lost four games now
after having the lead.”

“It’s a hard loss,” midfielder Caleb Westbay
added. “We were up 1-0. We were playing really well. We just
seemed to get really tired, and they got the momentum. Mentally,
we’re breaking down.”

Just like their Oct. 15 matchup in Westwood, the Bruins jumped
out to a first half lead Friday against Washington (11-5-0, 5-1-0).
In the 33rd minute, forward Cliff McKinley headed in a Jimmy
Frazelle cross from seven yards out to put UCLA up one. The goal
was the freshman forward’s second of the season.

But the Huskies charged back in the second half. The more
physical team, Washington took control of the game’s tempo.
They registered 12 out of the 17 shots and seven out of the nine
corner kicks after halftime.

UCLA, meanwhile, seemed content to absorb the barrage and
protect its lead.

The Huskies were finally able to break through on the scoreboard
in the 75th minute. Defender Bryn Ritchie headed in a Mark
Hogenhout corner kick for the equalizer.

Ten minutes later, Washington scored the game-winner when a
corner kick deflected off a group of players in front of the goal
and found its way into the net. Amidst the confusion, UCLA was
credited with scoring on its goal.

“That was a tremendous game,” Husky head coach Dean
Wurzberger said in a press release. “This was a big game for
us. If you look at one game on our schedule, we always knew this
was going to be a big one.

“Coming back from one goal down, it was great to see us
stay with our game and not get frustrated. We kept at it. We were
trying to go at a speed beyond our ability and beyond the need. We
just wanted to get the ball, control it and pass it, do the simple
things well. It was a great job by everyone out there.”

Meanwhile, the Bruins must face the unenviable task of
regrouping and refocusing after another loss. They can take solace,
however, in the belief that they really haven’t played that
poorly during their losing skid.

“We didn’t play exceptionally well,” said
Tsakiris. “But it’s never a matter of
effort.”

Westbay agrees with his fellow midfielder and looks to close out
the regular season on a positive note.

“We’ve been playing well,” he said.
“It’s just a matter of having confidence in
ourselves.”

If there is any time that that confidence will be put to the
test, it will be next weekend. The Bruins believe that if they are
to have any chance of making the NCAA Tournament, they must come up
with victories against No. 1 Stanford and Cal.