UCLA men’s soccer defeats UC Irvine, secures 1st win of season

In the 52nd minute of the match, junior defender Tommy Silva stood over the ball by the right corner flag.

He played a short pass to redshirt senior midfielder Jose Sosa, who took a few touches toward the goal, before delivering a cross into the box with his right foot.

Last season’s joint-top goalscorer, redshirt senior forward Kevin Diaz, found some open space, met the ball with his head and directed it into the net to record the Bruins’ first goal of the regular season.

No. 23 UCLA men’s soccer (1-0) defeated UC Irvine (0-1) by a score of 1-0 on Thursday night at Wallis Annenberg Stadium. With the victory, the Bruins secured their first win of the season and extended their all-time record against the Anteaters to 18-3-1.

Diaz, who started on the bench before coming on in the first half, said the goal had a direct impact on his mental state.

“I feel amazing, especially since I missed a penalty kick in our second exhibition match, so I was a little frustrated with myself,” Diaz said. “But getting a goal today really improved my confidence.”

The blue and gold only registered one shot on target in the first half, but in his half-time team talk, coach Ryan Jorden said he was optimistic about his team’s ability to create more chances.

“I said, ‘Look, we’re getting the opportunities, but we’re not executing the fine moment in the middle that has to happen to get the action that you want,’” Jorden said. “I just had to remind them about some of the ways and methods to get chances going forward.”

UCLA concluded the match with 12 shot attempts with five on target. Jorden praised Diaz’s mental fortitude after the forward notched three shots on goal by the end of the game.

“Kevin had a great attitude despite not being named in the starting 11,” Jorden said. “Obviously, because he stayed positive, he ended up getting the goal that helped the team win.”

On the opposing side, the Anteaters failed to record a single shot on target. One factor in the shutout was freshman midfielder Tarun Karumanchi, who made his collegiate debut with a full 90 minutes on the field.

The rookie lauded the team’s successful defensive strategy against the Anteaters but said the matchup revealed individual areas of improvement.

“Defensively, we stayed compact,” Karumanchi said. “We didn’t let Irvine come into our box, and hopefully we can take that forward into the next game. Something I need to improve on is breaking defensive lines more often with penetrative passes to get forward and create more chances.”

Jorden added that he was pleased with Karumanchi’s performance and the potential he’s demonstrated thus far.

“His work rate is incredible defensively, he’s good in possession, and I think he showed both tonight,” Jorden said. “His job is just to continue to work on the little details, so he’s constantly improving in different aspects of the game, but he’s got great qualities.”

UCLA will face Virginia Tech in its next match at home on Sunday at 6 p.m.