Conference matchplay continues for the Bruins as they etch another tally on the scoreboard.

On Thursday night, No. 21 UCLA women’s soccer (7-2-1, 2-0-0 Big Ten) continued to kick off its inaugural matches in the Big Ten with a 1-0 win against Indiana (5-2-1, 0-2-0) at Bill Armstrong Stadium in Bloomington, Indiana.

“Part of our team talk today was, ‘Just because we joined the Big Ten doesn’t mean we lose our identity,’” said coach Margueritte Aozasa. “I thought we did a nice job tonight of introducing ourselves to that Big Ten style but also introducing Indiana to that West Coast-style soccer.”

The Bruins welcomed back a familiar face that made its return to the field during Thursday night’s matchup. Junior forward America Frias returned to the starting 11 after missing the last nine games while representing Mexico in the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup, adding to UCLA’s diverse roster of both veterans and newcomers.

“I was super eager to get back and get into the rhythm of things again,” she said. “I was very much ready to come back and play for UCLA and play with all these girls.”

In the first six minutes of the game, graduate keeper Ryan Campbell recorded a save against Indiana midfielder Sydney Masur’s top left shot on goal. Senior defender Quincy McMahon followed up with the Bruins’ first goal-attempt shot to the bottom right of the net, but Indiana goalkeeper Jamie Gerstenberg’s block prevented the Bruins from snatching the lead.

Just when both sides were teetering on a net’s edge, junior midfielder Sofia Cook came up with a shot from off her right foot, aiming directly at the top left of the goal. The shot glided past Gerstenberg’s hands to mark the first, and eventually only, tally of the match.

“I couldn’t have done it without my team,” Cook said. “That was really nice just to be able to get a goal for the team – I was really happy, and I was happy with my performance.”

The Bruins gave up only five attempted shots before they made their first goal – a stark contrast to the 16 attempted goal shots during the first half of UCLA’s last match against Oregon.

Following the 1-0 lead from the Bruins, both teams made changes to their starting lineups. Notably for the Bruins, graduate midfielder Sunshine Fontes and sophomore forward Taylor Cheatham made appearances at the 27th and 30th minutes, respectively.

Aozasa said substitution creates an exposure opportunity for the depth between the new and experienced members on the roster.

“We’re going to use our depth where we can, especially when we travel, because it’s hard to have sustained performance if we run our players into the ground,” Aozasa said. “I can look down the bench, and there’s a lot of players that we can not only use, but that can help us.”

Merely seconds into the second half, the field experienced two fouls from both sides and a goal attempt by Indiana midfielder Elle Britt. Unlike the first half, the Bruins made four fewer attempted shots on goal, allowing focus on defensive footwork and prowess. When the final whistle blew, it marked the beginning of a Bruin winning streak as UCLA added a second Big Ten victory following its 2-1 win over Oregon.

Cook said that despite the challenge of facing a brand-new opponent, the team adjusted well – but there is still room for improvement.

“We can keep working on finishing our chances,” Cook said. “We have 11 shots with just one goal – so focusing on putting it into the back of the net.”

Frias said consistency is key moving forward. With her experience competing on the international stage, Frias’ permanent return could be the solution that the Bruins are looking for.

“Our chances we created came from keeping the ball and playing how we know how to play,” Frias said. “The next thing is going to have to be (being) a little more consistent in the finishing and the shots to close off teams, because I don’t think the score of 1-0 did us justice.”

After kicking off conference play 2-0, the Bruins will finish off their cross-country road trip as they head to Purdue on Sunday for their final game of a six-game road streak.