UCLA
13-5-1, 7-3-1Pac-12
USC
14-4-1, 8-2-1Pac-12
UCLA Beats USC, 1-0, in Crosstown Showdown
November 04, 2016 | Women's Soccer
Carson, Calif. โ Playing in front of a crowd of over 8500 at the StubHub Center, No. 18 UCLA shut out No. 5 USC, 1-0. Senior midfielder Annie Alvarado scored the game-winning goal in the 27th minute, and freshman goalkeeper Teagan Micah recorded her seventh shutout of the season, making a career-high seven saves.
Alvarado's volley at 26:23 broke the scoreless tie. Zoey Goralski started the play by sending the ball into the box. It was cleared out by a USC defender, but the clearance went right to Alvarado in the middle of the box, and she volleyed it past USC goalkeeper Sammy Jo Prudhomme for her second goal of the season.
"It's huge for confidence," said UCLA head coach Amanda Cromwell on the victory. "We just needed to play well after last weekend. I think the girls responded really well. We executed the game-plan. It was fantastic, their effort, how they were plugged into what we wanted to do."
The Bruins were dangerous throughout the entire first half, with Jessie Fleming quarterbacking the offense and creating several dangerous chances, including nice feeds to Anika Rodriguez in the fourth minute and Gabbi Miranda in the sixth. Fleming had two shots of her own early in the half, one going wide in the 12th minute and another saved in the 15th.
Presenting your weekly amazing @_jessiefleming play ... ?? pic.twitter.com/IC8V2X6nai
โ UCLA Women's Soccer (@UCLAWSoccer) November 5, 2016
USC's best chance of the first half came with just 10 seconds to play. The Trojans earned a free kick outside the box, and Katie Johnson popped a shot that went just inches over the crossbar as the 10-second countdown was winding down.
The Trojans pushed hard in the second half for the equalizer, taking 11 shots to UCLA's four in the half, but kept getting turned away. Micah made three saves in the half, including a fingertip stop in the 76th minute on a shot by Katie Johnson. The Bruin defense held strong as well, making some key defensive stops to keep the Trojans off the board. Jacey Pederson blocked a shot in the box in the 80th minute, and Hailie Mace blocked a shot by Nicole Molen in the 89th minute.
The Bruins finish the regular season with a 13-5-1 overall record and 7-3-1 mark in Pac-12 play.
"Their mission all along is to play some fantastic soccer," Cromwell said. "Especially the first half tonight, you saw some tremendous soccer. It was fun to watch. Our body of work all year has shown that we can play with the best in the country, and we can beat the best in the country."
When you score the match-winner over No. 5 USC pic.twitter.com/ypN7Ak8kPR
โ Pac-12 Network (@Pac12Network) November 5, 2016
Team Stats
Alvarado, Annie (2)
one touch off clearance near post finish
26:23
