With similar stats, UCLA women’s soccer looks to improve on 2018 tournament run
Junior forward Ashley Sanchez notched two assists in then-No. 14 UCLA women’s soccer’s win over then-No. 9 USC on Friday night. Sanchez now holds the school record for most career assists, with 39. (Axel Lopez/Daily Bruin senior staff)
By Jake Greenberg-Bell
Nov. 13, 2019 1:43 a.m.
The Bruins were in a very similar situation last year.
They entered the NCAA tournament as the No. 2 seed, riding a nine-game winning streak which included 16 goals in their final four games.
This year, UCLA women’s soccer (14-4-1, 8-3 Pac-12) is also on its longest winning streak of the season – five games – and has once again secured a second seed. UCLA will host Lamar University (16-6-0, 10-1 Southland Conference) – which boasts a 12-game winning streak of its own – in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
Prior to UCLA’s five-game winning streak, the Bruins had lost three out of six. But given the recent wins, junior forward Ashley Sanchez said the team is confident that it’s playing its best soccer.
“We’re just peaking at the right time,” Sanchez said. “It’s really exciting.”
Last season’s team entered the postseason fresh off a victory against USC, a win which also clinched second place in the Pac-12. Both facts ring true for this year’s team as well.
After the team advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals in 2018, only two seniors graduated, leaving many players on this season’s squad with postseason experience.
The Bruins’ second straight late-season winning streak has also coincided with their improved health. Redshirt senior forward Anika Rodriguez has notched four assists since returning from injury and four-star recruit freshman forward Kali Trevithick made her first appearance since Sept. 1 on Friday.
Sophomore midfielder Maricarmen Reyes has also returned to play in the team’s past six games and scored two goals alongside two assists, something coach Amanda Cromwell said has helped the team’s depth.
“Momentum is huge going into the postseason, and we’re confident, we’re getting players back from injury,” Cromwell said. “We just put ourselves in a really great spot, which is what we want to do at the end of the year.”
Into the tournament
UCLA’s No. 2 seed guarantees home-field advantage for at least the first three rounds of the tournament, should the Bruins get that far. The last team to win the tournament without a first or second seed was then-No. 4 seed Notre Dame back in 2010.
The Bruins’ first-round opponent – the Cardinals – started the season 1-6 before rattling off 14 wins in 15 games and winning the Southland Conference. However, the team will be the only one playing out of its conference. UCLA, on the other hand, was an at-large selection and is one of nine Pac-12 teams in the tournament.
“We can host three games at home,” said Cromwell. “And who knows, if a (No.) 1 seed loses, we can host another game if we keep winning, … You always want to play at home, especially in Wallis Annenberg Stadium – we get the best crowds and have the best environment in the country.”
The combination of the winning streak, postseason experience, players returning from injury and home-field advantage were all factors in the Bruins’ NCAA tournament run a season ago.
This year, UCLA boasts the same attributes heading into postseason play and needs four wins to advance further than last year’s squad.
