UCLA
San Diego State
UCLA Begins 2017 Season this Weekend
August 17, 2017 | Women's Soccer
No. 9 UCLA vs. San Diego State
Los Angeles, Calif. (Marshall Field at Drake Stadium)
Friday,ย Aug. 18 - 7:05 pm PT
TV: Pac-12 Network (Christian Miles, Temryss Lane)
Internet Radio: UCLABruins.com (Nick Koop)
Live Stats: UCLALiveStats.com
Tickets: UCLABruins.com/tickets ($8 adults / $5 youth 12 and under)
Twitter: @UCLAWSoccer
No. 9 UCLA at Long Beach State
Long Beach, Calif. (George Allen Field)
Sunday,ย Aug. 20 - 7:00 pm PT
Internet Radio: KBeach.org
Live Stats: LongBeachState.com
Tickets: $11 adults / $8 youth 12 and under
Twitter: @UCLAWSoccer
About the Bruins
No. 9 UCLA will open its 2017 season this weekend with a pair of matches, starting with the home opener on Friday, Aug. 18 at 7 p.m. against San Diego State, followed by a road match at Long Beach State on Sunday at 7 p.m. Friday's season opener will be broadcast live on the Pac-12 Network with Christian Miles and Temryss Lane on the call, and it can also be heard online at UCLABruins.com with Nick Koop calling the action.
UCLA in Season Openers
UCLA is 17-6-1 all-time in season openers and has won six of the last seven. This is the second consecutive year UCLA has opened the season against San Diego State. The Bruins won last year's matchup in San Diego, 5-0, thanks to a first-half hat trick from Darian Jenkins. Julia Hernandez and Amber Munerlyn scored the Bruins' other two goals, and goalkeeper Teagan Micah totaled two saves to earn a shutout in her collegiate debut.
Scouting the Aztecs
San Diego State went 10-7-4 a year ago and finished in third place in the Mountain West Conference with a 6-2-3 league record. The Aztecs graduated their top scorer from 2016, 11-goal scorer Victoria Barba, but return their No. 2 goal scorer Angela Mitchell, who totaled four goals and No. 2 point producer Aliyah Utush, who had 13 points off three goals and seven assists. Also back for San Diego State is NSCAA All-Pacific Region defender Stacie Moran.
Scouting the 49ers
Long Beach State enters the season ranked No. 24 in the Top Drawer Soccer poll after winning the Big West Conference Tournament last year and making its eighth NCAA Tournament appearance. The 49ers are led by 2016 Big West Offensive Player of the Year Ashley Gonzales, who is a three-time NSCAA All-Region performer and the No. 5 goal scorer in Long Beach State history with 28 career goals. Gonzales scored a conference-best 11 goals in 2016.
Exhibition Roundup
UCLA played a pair of exhibition matches last week in preparation for the upcoming 2017 season and went 2-0, with wins over Canada FISU and CSU Bakersfield.
- The Bruins defeated Canada FISU, 1-0, on Friday, Aug. 11 as midfielder Chloe Castaneda scored the game's only goal in the ninth minute, tapping in a cross from Anika Rodriguez. UCLA outshot the Canadian squad, 11-6. Goalkeeper Teagan Micah, who picked up the victory, made one save, and freshman Lauren Brzykcy made two saves.
- The Bruins then earned a 8-1 victory over CSUB, as eight different players scored, including four freshmen - Delanie Sheehan, Marley Canales, Olivia Athens and Viviana Villacorta. Also scoring goals for the Bruins were Jessie Fleming, Anika Rodriguez, Hailie Mace and Chloe Castaneda.
2016 in Review
The Bruins finished last season ranked No. 13 in the country with a 15-5-2 overall record and 7-3-1 Pac-12 record, which tied for fourth in the standings. UCLA advanced to the Round of 16 in the NCAA Tournament before falling to No. 1 overall seed West Virginia in penalty kicks in a snowy affair. Five Bruins earned Pac-12 awards, including All-Pac-12 honorees Jessie Fleming (1st team), Anika Rodriguez (2nd team) and Hailie Mace (honorable mention) and All-Freshman selection Kaiya McCullough. Fleming became just the fourth Bruin in history to earn NSCAA AllAmerica honors as a freshman.
Preseason Ranking
UCLA will begin the season ranked No. 9 in the United Soccer Coaches (formerly NSCAA) preseason poll, one of three Pac-12 squads ranked in the Top 10. The Bruins are set to play three teams in the preseason Top 10 and seven in the Top 25. UCLA has home matches against No. 2 Stanford on Oct. 26, No. 3 USC on Nov. 3, No. 20 Utah on Oct. 12, and No. 24 Santa Clara on Aug. 24, as well as road matches at No. 8 BYU on Sept. 1, No. 11 Virginia on Sept. 7 and No. 25 Colorado on Sept. 22. The Bruins are ranked No. 6 in the TopDrawerSoccer.com preseason poll.
MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List
Sophomore midfielder Jessie Fleming has been selected to the MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List for 2017. The MAC Hermann Trophy is the most prestigious individual award in college soccer and is presented annually to the most outstanding male and female players of the year. Fleming, a member of the full Canadian Women's National Team since 2013, was one of just two freshmen to receive All-America honors last season, being selected to the NSCAA All-America third team after leading UCLA in goals (11) and points (27). In her first game as a Bruin, less than 10 days after winning a bronze medal at the Olympic Games with Team Canada, she scored two goals, and she went on to score a goal in each of her first four games. Fleming was selected the Top Drawer Soccer Freshman of the Year.
Bruins Earn Preseason Awards
Three Bruins have been selected by TopDrawerSoccer.com for its preseason awards. Sophomore midfielder Jessie Fleming is on its Preseason Best XI, and forward Ashley Sanchez and defender Kennedy Faulknor have been named to the Freshmen Best XI team.
- Fleming (London, Ontario, Canada) was the Top Drawer Soccer National Freshman of the Year last season after scoring 11 goals and 27 points to lead the team in both categories. The Canadian National Team veteran played in the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup and won a bronze medal at the 2016 Olympic Games. Last season, Fleming became only the fourth Bruin freshman ever to earn NSCAA All-America honors.
- The No. 1 recruit in the nation, Sanchez (Monrovia, Calif.) is the reigning U.S. Soccer Young Female Player of the Year. She was the fi rst U.S. player in history to play in two Women's World Cups in the same year, serving as team captain for the Under-17 squad and starting for the Under-20 team in 2016. She also trained with the full U.S. Women's National Team at a training camp in April of 2016.
- Faulknor (Markham, Ontario, Canada) also has full national team experience, becoming the youngest center back ever to play for the Canadian Women's National Team when she was 16 years old. The 2015 U17 Canadian Player of the Year played in the 2016 CONCACAF Women's Under-17 Championship and was named to the Best XI team at the 2014 CONCACAF Under-15 Championship.
Fresh Faces
UCLA has assembled another star-studded recruiting class for the 2017 season, as the freshman class is ranked No. 2 in the nation by Top Drawer Soccer. The class is highlighted by No. 1 recruit and U.S. Women's National Team member Ashley Sanchez and Canadian Women's National Team member Kennedy Faulknor. Also signing with UCLA are Youth National Team players Olivia Athens, Lauren Brzykcy, Karina Rodriguez, Delanie Sheehan and Viviana Villacorta and local standouts Issy Bellinghausen, Dani Satterwhite and High School All-American Hannah Sharts.
National Teams
UCLA has a plethora of national team players on its 2017 squad, including four who have earned call-ups to the full national team - Fleming (Canada), Teagan Micah (Australia) and freshmen Ashley Sanchez (U.S.) and Kennedy Faulknor (Canada). Three played with the U.S. Under-23 National Team in July - Sanchez, Zoey Goralski and Hailie Mace. Karina Rodriguez and Viviana Villacorta have played with the Under-20s this year, and Kaiya McCullough and Delanie Sheehan have played with the Under-19s in 2017. Eleven more Bruins have played with various U.S. Youth National Teams in their career - Olivia Athens (U-18), Lauren Brzykcy (U-17), Marley Canales (2016 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup), Chloe Castaneda (U-17), MacKenzie Cerda (U-18), Sunny Dunphy (U-19), Chloe Hemingway (U-18), Gabrielle Matulich (U-20), Jacey Pederson (U-19), Anika Rodriguez (U-17), and Claire Winter (U-15). In addition, Siri Ervik played with the Norwegian U-19 National Team, and Julia Hernandez played with the Spanish U-17 National Team.
25 Years of UCLA Women's Soccer
UCLA women's soccer enters its 25th season as an NCAA sport with an all-time record of 411-94-36 (.793). Under head coach Joy Fawcett, UCLA went 10-6-1 in its first season with varsity status in 1993, tallying an 11-0 win over Southern California College in its fi rst game, along with two wins over USC, 6-0 and 2-0. The Bruins were led in the inaugural season by Sonja Munevar, who had 13 goals and 32 points, and Kristy Howard, who totaled 10 assists. UCLA earned its first NCAA Tournament appearance just two years later and earned its first postseason victory in 1997. In 2000, the Bruins advanced to the NCAA Championship match and played in the College Cup a total of eight times before winning its fi rst national title in 2013.
Looking Ahead
The Bruins will host two games at Drake Stadium next week, welcoming No. 24 Santa Clara on Thursday, Aug. 24 at 7 p.m. and UC Santa Barbara on Sunday, Aug. 27 at 5:30 p.m. Both games will be televised live on Pac-12 Networks.
