#25 UCLA Faces #6 Akron in Road Match
October 29, 2015 | Men's Soccer
#25 UCLA at #6 Akron
FirstEnergy Stadium
Sunday, Nov. 1 - 10:00 am PT
Live Stream - www.GoZips.com
Live Stats - www.GoZips.com
Twitter - @UCLAMSoccer
UCLA Takes on Akron in Non-Conference Match
The Bruins take a week off from Pac-12 Conference play to travel to Akron to take on the Zips in their final non-conference match of the season. The game will kick-off at 10:00am PT and can be seen via live web stream at www.GoZips.com.
In The Rankings
UCLA jumps back into the NSCAA Coaches' Poll at No. 25 this week, while remaining unranked in the Soccer America Poll and the Top Drawer Soccer Poll. Akron enters the weekend ranked No. 6 in all three major rankings.
Scouting the Zips
Akron enters the weekend with an overall record of 12-2-2 and 2-0-1 in the Mid-American Conference. At home this season, the Zips have lost just once, going 5-1-1 in seven matches. Earlier this week Akron defeated West Virginia, 2-0, to push its streak to nine consecutive matches without a loss. The Bruins and Zips have four common opponents this season (Georgetown, Maryland, UC Santa Barbara and VCU), with UCLA going 1-3-0 in those matches and Akron going 4-0-0 in those matches. The Akron offense is led by Richie Laryea who's posted a team-high nine goals and four assists this season (22 points). Sam Gainford and Adam Najem have also been productive for the Zips, with Gainford posting 20 points and Najem posting 19. In net, Jake Fenlason has started all 16 matches, notching a 1.14 GAA with 65 saves.
UCLA holds a 3-0-0 all-time record over Akron, with the last match resulting in a 2-0 win for the Bruins over the Zips in 1991. The other two previous meetings were in 1978 and 1989, and UCLA has out-scored Akron, 8-1, in the three matches combined.
Weekend In Review
On Friday, UCLA arrived in Palo Alto to take on the third-ranked Stanford Cardinal for the final time this season. Following a, 2-1, loss to Stanford the week before, the Bruins were looking to exact revenge, but fell behind by a goal early. However, a late first half goal from Abu Danladi and an early second half goal from Seyi Adekoya gave UCLA the lead. With the Bruins up one, the Cardinal rebounded to net the tying goal on a penalty kick four minutes later. Despite a good effort from the UCLA side, the match ended in a, 2-2, draw.
On Sunday, the Bruins looked to close out the road trip with a victory at Cal, who they had beat, 6-0, the week before. However, the match started poorly for the Bruins who conceded a goal just three minutes in. The resiliant UCLA group responded though with a pair of first half goals to take a, 2-1, lead into the half. With the Bruins dominating play, it looked to be a prosperous afternoon, but a red card to goalkeeper Juan Cervantes turned the game upside down in the 57th minute. Playing a man down, UCLA could not hang on to the lead and conceded three unanswered goal to eventually fall, 4-3, to Cal.
Seyi and Jose Lead the Way
UCLA sophomore striker Seyi Adekoya and freshman midfielder Jose Hernandez have served as the catalysts for the UCLA offense this season. Hernandez is tied for first in goals (9) and is first in points (21), while Adekoya is tied for first in goals (9) and is second in points (19) among Pac-12 Conference players. Among all Division I collegiate players, Adekoya and Hernandez rank T-19th in goals, while Hernandez ranks T-23rd in points. Among all Division I collegiate freshmen players, Hernandez ranks T-5th in goals and points.
Hernandez Closing In On Freshmen Record
Freshman Jose Hernandez is having a phenomenal freshman campaign and is closing in on a UCLA freshmen record. The most goals a freshman has ever scored in a single season for UCLA is 12, set by David Estrada in 2006. Hernandez has nine goals so far, with four regular season games and the possiblity of postseason play remaining.
The Red-Hot Abu Danladi
Sophomore striker Abu Danladi has been red-hot in the past two weeks for the Bruin attack. Danladi has scored a goal in each of his last four matches, totaling five goals and one assist over that span. His mark of four-straight games with a goal is one behind the school-record of five consecutive games with a goal set by Chandler Hoffman (2011), Joe-Max Moore (1991) and Billy Thompson (1988).
UCLA Offense On Rampant Pace
The UCLA offense has led the way in the Pac-12 Conference in 2015. The Bruins enter the weekend with 35 goals through the first 15 games of the season. UCLA currently leads the Pac-12 in total goals and goals per game (2.33). Among all Division I collegiate teams, the Bruins rank T-6th in goals per game and T-10th in total goals.
Youth Reigns Supreme
For UCLA this season, the youth has carried the scoring load through 15 matches. Of the Bruins' 35 goals, 30 have been scored by freshmen or sophomores. Additionally, the freshmen and sophomores have racked up 79 of the team's 99 points, accounting for 80 percent of the team's scoring output. The complete scoring breakdown by class can be found below.
| Class | Goals | Assists | Points |
| Freshman | 15 | 10 | 40 |
| Sophomore | 15 | 9 | 39 |
| Junior | 2 | 6 | 10 |
| Senior | 3 | 4 | 10 |
Second Half/Overtime Adjustments
UCLA has been a completely different team in the second half and overtime so far this season. 26 of the team's 35 goals have been scored in the second half or overtime and 148 of their 222 shots have come in the second half or overtime. The shot differential in the second half and overtime also favors UCLA, 148-77, over opponents.
Different Match, Different Lineup
In 15 matches this season, the Bruins have trotted out 13 different starting lineups. Games five and six vs. Cal Poly and UC Santa Barbara and games 13 and 14 vs. Cal and at Stanford are the only occurances where UCLA used the same lineup twice. Additionally, 20 different players have earned a starting nod at some point this season.
15 Bruins Named to Pac-12 All-Century Team
14 former players and one former coach were named to the Pac-12 All-Century Men's Soccer team last week. The selections were highlighted by Brad Friedel who was named the Player of the Century and Sigi Schmid who was named the Coach of the Century. Named as starters were forwards Ante Razov (1992-95) and Billy Thompson (1986-90), midfielders Joe-Max Moore (1990-92), Cobi Jones (1988-91) and Chris Henderson (1989-90), defenders Carlos Bocanegra (1997-99), Paul Caligiuri (1982-86) and Frankie Hejduk (1992-94) and goalkeeper Brad Friedel (1990-92). UCLA players named as reserves were midfielders Leo Stolz (2012-14), Eddie Lewis (1992-95) and Dale Ervine (1982-85) and goalkeepers Matt Reis (1994-97) and Nick Rimando (1997-99).
Amick & Howe Academic All-District
UCLA junior defender Michael Amick and senior midfielder Grady Howe have been named to the Capital One Academic All-District Team. This is the third-straight season Howe has landed on the Capital One Academic All-District Team and the first such honor for Amick. In addition to his three Capital One Academic All-District Team selections, Howe was also named a first team Pac-12 All-Academic selection in each of the past two seasons. The 2014-15 UCLA Scholar Athlete of the Year, Howe was named a finalist for the Elite 89 Academic Award last year as well. The Corona Del Mar High School alum currently holds the highest cumulative GPA on the team. Amick earned second team Pac-12 All-Academic honors last season and currently holds the second highest cumulative GPA on the team.
Tough Schedule Ahead
UCLA has already played four teams that were ranked in the NSCAA Top-25, but still must travel to No. 5 Akron this weekend. Following that, the Bruins close out with home matches against Oregon State and Washington and a road match at San Diego State.
