This post was updated Nov. 27 at 9:32 p.m.

The Bruins are College Cup bound.

No. 1 seed UCLA women’s soccer (20-2-1) defeated No. 3 seed Virginia (16-4-3) in a 2-1 victory in front of a sold-out crowd at Wallis Annenberg Stadium on Saturday. With the triumph, the blue and gold is set to return to the Women’s College Cup for the first time since 2019 and for the 12th time in program history.

The College Cup semifinal berth is also the program’s first under rookie coach Margueritte Aozasa. The Pac-12 Coach of the Year said she was very happy with her team’s performance Saturday.

“One of the things we asked of our team was to be super disciplined defensively, and I thought we did that,” Aozasa said. “Attacking wise, I’m really proud of the group because we asked them to be adaptable, and we played I think four different shapes based on tactics. And everyone delivered, everybody executed, so I couldn’t be more proud of the team.”

The Bruins struggled to keep possession for the first 15 minutes of the contest but wasted no time converting their first shot of the day. Assisted by a perfect 1-2 pass from sophomore forward Lexi Wright, senior midfielder/forward Sunshine Fontes drove down the left wing and fired a shot. The ball deflected off of Cavalier goalkeeper Cayla White’s gloves and into the back of the net in the 15th minute to grant the Bruins their first goal of the night.

Fontes discussed how goals like the one she scored tonight come together on the practice field first, and she credited her teammate for setting it up.

“In training, you see the connection there,” Fontes said. “Just translating that from training to the game pays off, and Lexi is incredible, so it’s nice for her to have the assist and be recognized in that way.”

Both teams alternated shots for the remainder of the first half, including a would-be second goal for UCLA disallowed in the 24th minute for an offside violation, and an open shot in front of goal for Virginia in the 27th minute by Lia Godfrey sent directly into the hands of graduate student goalkeeper Lauren Brzykcy for the save. Both teams finished the first half with four shots, two of which were on goal. 

The Cavaliers brought pressure in the start of the second half, generating multiple chances, including a powerful shot on goal by Virginia forward Alexa Spaanstra that forced Brzykcy to make a jumping save in the 66th minute.

A set piece in the 75th minute earned Virginia the equalizer. A corner kick whipped in by midfielder Lia Godfrey found the forehead of 5-foot-10 forward Haley Hopkins, floating the ball into the top left corner and heightening the intensity inside Wallis Annenberg Stadium. 

The Bruins fired back with their only shot on goal of the second half from freshman midfielder Sofia Cook in the 82nd minute that forced White to make a diving save. The blue and gold otherwise struggled to generate opportunities in the second period, finishing the half outshot by a margin of seven to three.

After a back-and-forth start to overtime, Cook regained the lead for UCLA in the 98th minute. A haphazard clearance in the box by Virginia found Cook’s right foot on the first touch, poking the game-winning goal just through the gloves of White.

Cook said the decisive goal came together very quickly.

“All I remember is the ball was coming, Ally (graduate student forward Ally Cook) was running at me, and I just hit it with the outside of my foot,” Sofia Cook said. “Yeah, it was awesome.”

As Sofia Cook’s teammate, Fontes made sure to highlight the importance of the first-year player’s performance

“Having Sofia Cook step up, who is a freshman, was just big time,” Fontes said. “We needed her in that moment, and there she was.”

Cheers rang through the cold Westwood night as the Bruins rushed the field following the expiration of the final overtime period. After much cheering and chanting, Aozasa reflected on the team’s success during her first year with the program.

“This is what we’ve talked about from the first day I worked here in January,” Aozasa said. “One of our goals was to get back to the Final Four and to make a bit of a statement, and I think that we did that today.”

UCLA will fly to Cary, North Carolina, this week to face fellow No. 1 seed Alabama in the Women’s College Cup semifinals on Friday at 5:30 p.m.