UCLA Women’s Soccer Beats Virginia, Punches Ticket to College Cup

It took some additional time to find out a winner, however the Bruins are formally headed to Cary, North Carolina.

No. 1 seed UCLA ladies’s soccer (20-2-1, 9-2 Pac-12) beat No. 3 seed Virginia (16-4-3, 6-2-2 ACC) by a rating of 2-1 within the Elite Eight at Wallis Annenberg Stadium on Saturday night time, extending their season one other week as they wound up clinching a spot within the Faculty Cup for the primary time since 2019. The victory got here in time beyond regulation as effectively, with freshman midfielder Sofia Prepare dinner’s heroics finally offering the ultimate push the Bruins wanted to lock up the win.

Prepare dinner’s game-winner within the 98th minute was arrange by senior midfielder Jackie Gilday, who carved by the Cavaliers’ protection and nutmegged a defender within the attacking third. The veteran was in a position to cross the ball into the field, just for it to be headed away by a Virginia defender.

That is when Prepare dinner got here cruising in to her left, one-timing it with the skin of her proper foot and directing the ball straight previous the goalkeeper, contained in the left submit.

UCLA held sturdy for the remainder of time beyond regulation, and coach Margueritte Aozasa guided this system to the ultimate 4 in her very first yr main the employees. Whereas her predecessor – Amanda Cromwell – gained the staff its first and solely nationwide title again in 2013, she ended her tenure with a string of early exits within the NCAA event, a development Aozasa has instantly erased.

The Bruins struck first on Saturday, too, getting on the board good and early within the fifteenth minute.

Senior ahead Sunshine Fontes did all of it herself, ranging from the left sideline and splitting defenders whereas chasing down lengthy touches to make all of it the way in which to the left submit. Goalkeeper Cayla White was no match for Fontes’ pace and the ability of her shot, as her try went straight by her gloves and into the again of the web.

Graduate goalkeeper Lauren Brzykcy wanted to make a pair of saves to maintain Virginia scoreless within the first half, and he or she did simply that to information her staff into the break up 1-0.

The Cavaliers’ eventual equalizer got here within the seventy fifth minute, lower than 10 minutes faraway from a clutch save by Brzykcy to quickly protect the clear sheet.

This time, Virginia had been awarded a nook kick. Midfielder Lia Godfrey’s cross got here in excessive, and ahead Haley Hopkins received her head on it amid all of the site visitors. Brzykcy could not observe it down, and the Cavaliers had tied issues up at 1-1.

The Bruins could have had an honest likelihood to return forward within the 82nd, however White turned it away. Brzykcy, in the meantime, needed to make saves within the 84th and ninetieth minutes to ship issues to time beyond regulation.

Neither keeper made a save within the two 15-minute time beyond regulation intervals, as 5 of the six photographs between the 2 groups had been both blocked or off course solely.

Virginia had 15 photographs to UCLA’s 9 by the tip of the night time, however Bryzkcy made 5 saves to maintain the match a lot lower-scoring. Prepare dinner’s winner all however ended issues, giving the Bruins their second time beyond regulation victory in three video games – the final one got here towards UCF on penalty kicks within the Spherical of 32.

UCLA will subsequent face fellow No. 1 seed Alabama within the nationwide semifinals on Dec. 2. The opposite semifinal matchup is between No. 1 seed Florida State and No. 2 seed North Carolina, who the Bruins beat 2-1 on the street again in September.

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PHOTO COURTESY OF ROSS TURTELTAUB/UCLA ATHLETICS