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UCLA men’s soccer to start 4-game road series with kickoff against Rutgers

Senior forward Constantinos Michaelides battles for possession of the ball. Michaelides is in his fourth year with the Bruins’ program and is tied for the team-lead in goals scored. (Vivian Xu/Daily Bruin senior staff)

men's soccer


Rutgers
Saturday, 9 a.m. PST

Yurcak Field
No TV info

By Ethan Ng

Oct. 27, 2022 3:21 p.m.

This post was updated Oct. 27 at 10:18 p.m. 

The Bruins will travel across the country to kick off a four-game road slate to wrap up their regular season.

UCLA men’s soccer (8-5-1, 3-3-1 Pac-12) will play against Rutgers (8-3-5, 4-2-2 Big 10) on Saturday at Yurcak Field in Piscataway, New Jersey. The blue and gold will be tasked with stopping forward MD Myers, who is tied for the NCAA lead in goals scored with 13 on the season.

“(Rutgers) is a very good team that plays in a very good conference,” said coach Ryan Jorden. “We have some ideas about what we can expect, but it should be a good surface and the weather looks to be good, so we’re going there to put in a good performance and get a result.”

After making the trip to the East Coast, the Bruins will then head back west to finish Pac-12 play against Washington, Oregon State and San Diego State. Jorden said he is looking forward to the journey ahead.

“Going on the road isn’t something we should have any fear of,” Jorden said. “We have to have a siege mentality and tell ourselves, ‘It’s us against everybody here, so let’s go do it.’”

Jorden’s team has been impervious to offensive attempts, conceding no more than one goal per game in nine consecutive matches. With the ball, however, the Bruins haven’t been as clinical as they would have liked, managing just two shots on goal from six attempts in their previous match against Stanford.

Despite his team’s profligacy in front of the goal, Jorden remained optimistic about their ability to score after their performance against the Cardinal.

“We just didn’t take the final piece, but we created more chances than any other game against Stanford in the last four years,” Jorden said. “My hope is that this spurs them a little bit to have a continued focus because we created some really great opportunities against what is probably the most organized team in America.”

One player looking to reignite the Bruin attack is senior forward Constantinos Michaelides, who is UCLA’s joint top goal scorer with three goals this season. Hailing from Limassol, Cyprus, Michaelides has spent time with his national team at the U-19 and U-21 levels.

Michaelides reflected on his time donning the blue and gold, admitting that it has been an emotional final season.

“When we returned for preseason this year, coach (Jorden) divided the team by class during a training session, and I thought to myself, ‘Wow, is this really happening?’” Michaelides said. “It’s really been a great journey for me both on and off the field. I am really grateful for the past four years, and I will carry these experiences with me and cherish them forever.”

On the other end of the pitch, despite coming off the bench, junior defender Pablo Greenlee has played 11 games and recorded two assists so far this season.

Greenlee said Michaelides and the departing seniors have had a tremendous impact on the program.

“The seniors were the first (recruiting) class under coach Jorden four years ago,” Greenlee said. “They’ve really been instrumental in creating a culture that’s positive and one where everyone wants to work for each other.”

However, the season is not over yet, and the postseason is right around the corner. These next four games are crucial for the Bruins to build their regular season resume, and Michaelides echoed his coach’s sentiments about how to come away with wins and convert more chances in future contests.

“We do have the positions and the chances, but we just need to add the final action and pass that will lead us to put the ball in the back of the net,” Michaelides said.

The Bruins will kick off against the Scarlet Knights at 9 a.m. on Saturday.

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Ethan Ng
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