UCLA
Florida
Women's Soccer Concludes Road Trip in Florida
August 30, 2018 | Women's Soccer
No. 2 UCLA (2-0-0) at No. 22 Florida (2-2-0)
Date: Friday, Aug. 31, 2018
Kickoff Time: 7:00 pm ET / 4:00 p.m. PT
Location: Gainesville, Fla.
Venue: Donald R. Dizney Stadium
Television: SEC Network +
Online Broadcast: WatchESPN.com
Live Stats: floridagators.com
No. 2 UCLA (2-0-0) at No. 4 Florida State (4-0-0)
Date: Sunday, Sept. 2 2018
Kickoff Time: 5:00 pm ET / 2:00 p.m. PT
Location: Tallahassee, Fla.
Venue: Seminole Soccer Complex
Television: ACC Network Extra
Online Broadcast: WatchESPN.com
Live Stats: seminoles.com
TWO MORE TOP 25 SHOWDOWNS
No. 2 UCLA (2-0) remains on the road for more games against Top 25 opponents. The Bruins will face No. 22 Florida in Gainesville, Fla. on Friday, Aug. 31 at 7pm ET/4pm PT before concluding the road trip at No. 4 Florida State (2-0) on Sunday, Sept. 2 at 5pm ET/2pm PT in Tallahassee. Both games can be viewed on watchespn.com or on the Watch ESPN app. Friday's game will be on SEC Network +, and Sunday's will be on ACC Network Extra.
UCLA-FLORIDA STATE MEET FOR FIRST TIME SINCE 2013 NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP
Not only is Sunday's UCLA-Florida State game a matchup between two of the nation's Top 4 teams, but it is also a rematch of the 2013 NCAA Championship game, which UCLA won in overtime, 1-0, to claim its first-ever national title. Florida State went on to win its first title a year later. In the 2013 final, Kodi Lavrusky took a perfect through ball from defender Megan Oyster in the 97th minute and finished far post for the championship-winning goal.
NATIONAL TEAM DUTY CALLS FOR MACE, FLEMING
UCLA All-Americans Hailie Mace and Jessie Fleming were called into National Team duty for international friendlies this week. Mace joined the U.S. Women's National Team training camp in Los Angeles ahead of matches against Chile on Aug. 31 and Sept. 4, while Fleming is with Canada for a Sept. 2 friendly against Brazil. This is Mace's third call-up to the full team. She earned her first cap on Apr. 8 against Mexico. Fleming is a Canadian National Team veteran, having totaled 53 caps and 41 starts. She played in the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup and won bronze at the 2016 Olympic Games. The Friday, Aug. 31 U.S. match will take place at StubHub Center in Carson, Calif. and will be televised live at 8pm PT on ESPN2. The Tuesday, Sept. 4 match will be at Avaya Stadium in San Jose, Calif. at 7pm PT, live on ESPN2. Canada plays Brazil in Ottawa on Sunday, Sept. 2.
MICAH SELECTED PAC-12 GOALKEEPER OF WEEK
After an impressive showing in a 2-1 win at No. 3 Penn State, junior goalkeeper Teagan Micah was selected the Pac-12 Goalkeeper of the Week for the fifth time in her career. Additionally, she earned Top Drawer Soccer Team of the Week honors for the first time. Micah made five saves in the Bruins' 2-1 road win over No. 3 Penn State, including a crucial save made at full extension in the 55th minute of a tie game. Her five saves moved her up to fifth on UCLA's career saves list with 161, and she also ranks fifth in career shutouts with 19 and sixth in career wins with 36. Micah has not allowed a goal in the run of play this year, giving up only a penalty kick against the Nittany Lions.
NEW HOME
After playing home games at Drake Stadium from 2000-17, the UCLA soccer teams have moved into a new home, Wallis Annenberg Stadium. The stadium, which seats 2,145, is located at the previously-named North Athletic Field, where UCLA played selected home games from 1967-99. The new stadium was made possible thanks to a $5 million lead gift from the Annenberg Foundation. The just-completed first phase of the stadium project includes grandstand seating and press box on the west side, a Daktronics LED video board and Musco Sports lighting. Future phases of the stadium project may include expanded stadium seating, a training room, student-athlete locker room, coaches' locker rooms, meeting spaces, ticketing space, and a new press box. UCLA won its first game in the new stadium in dramatic fashion on Aug. 17, with Hailie Mace scoring the game-winning goal with two seconds remaining in a 1-0 win over Long Beach State.
SCOUTING THE GATORS
Florida entered last week ranked No. 5 in the United Soccer Coaches poll after wins over Washington and Florida Atlantic but then dropped 17 spots to No. 22 after a pair of 1-0 losses to Ohio State and Oklahoma State. Cassidy Lindley leads the Gators in scoring with five points (1g, 3a), while Madison Alexander and Sammie Betters each have two goals. Like UCLA's Jessie Fleming, Florida forward Deanne Rose was called in for Canada's match against Brazil on Sept. 2. Florida head coach Becky Burleigh and UCLA head coach Amanda Cromwell were the first two women to coach a team to a NCAA women's soccer title, doing so in 1998 and 2013, respectively. Erica Walsh from Penn State, UCLA's last opponent, followed suit in 2015.
SERIES WITH FLORIDA
UCLA leads the overall series with Florida, 4-3, but the Gators won the last matchup in Los Angeles in 2016, 4-3 in overtime. That game marked Jessie Fleming's collegiate debut, and it was a masterpiece, as she scored two goals off the bench. Annie Alvarado scored the other goal for UCLA, but Florida came away with the victory in the 96th minute when a cross by Savannah Jordan pinged off two UCLA players and into the back of the net. The Bruins are 1-0 all-time in Gainesville, winning 4-0 in 2000.
SCOUTING THE SEMINOLES
Florida State has started the season 4-0 and has outscored its opponents, 12-0. The Seminoles' four-game shutout streak to start the season is a new school record. Dallas Dorosy, Kristina Lynch and Yujie Zhao each have two goals, and Malia Berkely has four assists. Florida State has two players on the MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List - Natalia Kuikka and Venezuelan National Team member Deyna Castellanos. Three Seminole players participated in the U-20 Women's World Cup earlier this month - Jaelin Howell (USA), Zhao (China) and Anna Patten (England).
SERIES WITH FLORIDA STATE
Sunday's game is the first non-NCAA Tournament matchup between UCLA and Florida State. UCLA won both previous tournament games in 2013 (1-0 in overtime for the national championship) and 2005 (4-0 in the semifinals).
MICAH IN TOP 5
Junior goalkeeper Teagan Micah moved into UCLA's all-time Top 5 in career saves after a five-save performance at Penn State. Her current total of 161 surpassed Gretchen Overgaard's 160. Micah now has her sights set on No. 4 CiCi Peterson, who made 177 saves. With 36 career wins, Micah is one away from tying Chante' Sandiford for fifth in career wins. Micah is already in the Top 5 with 19 career shutouts.
2017 IN REVIEW
UCLA advanced to the NCAA Championship match for the second time in five years under head coach Amanda Cromwell, who earned her 300th career coaching victory in 2017. The Bruins started the season by winning their first seven games and going unbeaten in their first 14 games. A 3-2 overtime win over USC in front of a NCAA regular season record crowd of 11,925 set the table for a deep postseason run. UCLA's playoff run was highlighted by late game-winning goals by Anika Rodriguez in both the second and third rounds and a shootout victory over Duke in the semifinals. Two Bruin players - midfielder Jessie Fleming and forward Hailie Mace - earned first-team All-America honors, and Fleming was a finalist for the MAC Hermann Trophy.
FOUR ON MAC HERMANN TROPHY WATCH LIST
Four members of the UCLA women's soccer team have been selected to the MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List for 2018, including 2017 finalist Jessie Fleming and 2017 semifinalist Hailie Mace. Also earning selection to the watch list are All-Region honorees Kaiya McCullough and Ashley Sanchez. The MAC Hermann Trophy, presented by World Wide Technology, is the most prestigious individual award in college soccer and is presented annually to the most outstanding male and female players of the year.
BRUINS EARN PRESEASON AWARDS
Five Bruins were selected by TopDrawerSoccer.com for its preseason awards. Junior midfielder Jessie Fleming made the Preseason Best XI first team, junior forward Hailie Mace was selected to the second team, and junior defender Kaiya McCullough and sophomore forward Ashley Sanchez were named to the third team. Midfielder Maricarmen Reyes earned a spot on the Freshman Best XI team.
THREE BRUINS PLAY IN UNDER-20 WORLD CUP
UCLA had three players in France earlier this month for the FIFA Under-20 Women's World Cup. Sophomores Ashley Sanchez and Viviana Villacorta represented the U.S., which went 1-1-1 in group play. Sanchez scored a goal, and Villacorta had two assists in a 6-0 victory over Paraguay. Freshman Maricarmen Reyes' Mexico squad went 1-2-0 in group play. All three Bruins started in all three games.
NATIONAL TEAMS
UCLA has a plethora of national team players on its 2018 squad, including five who have earned call-ups to the full national team - Hailie Mace and Ashley Sanchez (U.S.), Jessie Fleming and Kennedy Faulknor (Canada), and Teagan Micah (Australia). Three played at the 2018 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup this summer - Sanchez, Viviana Villacorta and Maricarmen Reyes. Two others - Delanie Sheehan and Karina Rodriguez - were on the U.S. U-20 squad at the 2018 CONCACAF Championships. and nine more have played with various U.S. Youth National Teams in their career - Olivia Athens (U-18), Lauren Brzykcy (U-17), Marley Canales (2018 U-23s, 2016 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup), Chloe Castaneda (U-17), Maddi Desiano (U-19), Sunny Dunphy (U-19), Jacey Pederson (U-19), Kaiya McCullough (U-19), and Anika Rodriguez (U-23). In addition, Julia Hernandez played with the Spanish U-17 National Team, Olivia de Moraes with the Brazilian U-17 team and Shana Flynn with the Canadian U-20s.
