UCLA
4-4-1, 0-2-0
UC Riverside
5-3-2, 0-0-0
UCLA Handles UC Riverside, 3-1
October 01, 2019 | Men's Soccer
LOS ANGELES – Behind debut goals from Riley Ferch and Constantinos Michaelides, the UCLA men's soccer team defeated visiting UC Riverside 3-1 on Tuesday night at Wallis Annenberg Stadium.
The Bruins (4-4-1) were 60 seconds away from recording their second shutout of the year, but Uros Ilic found the back of the net at the 89:00 mark to salvage the contest for UCR (5-3-2).
Ferch, a sophomore midfielder, got UCLA on board in just the fourth minute.
The play got started when senior forward Blayne Martinez ran down a ball on the left wing. Holding up, Martinez played a ball across the top of the box to senior midfielder Matthew Powell, who one touched a pass to Ferch above the 18.
From there, Ferch tried to play a pass back to Powell as a trio of Highlanders defenders swarmed the box. The ball bounced around Powell and came out on the other side for a streaking Ferch, who found himself wide open before blasting a shot into the bottom-right corner for his first collegiate score.
Neither team had a marked advantage the rest of the way, resulting in a 1-0 lead for UCLA heading into halftime.
Once play resumed, the field was heavily tilted in the Bruins' favor, resulting in a number of chances early on in the second half.
Michaelides capitalized on one of those chances in the 49th minute to double the Bruins lead. The Cyprus native made a run down the left wing and successfully out-raced his defender to a pass. Trying to stop a chance, the UCI defender slid to try and knock the ball out of bounds, but whiffed on the ball leaving Michaelides with plenty of room inside the box. From there, he advanced on goal and curled in a shot from the edge of the six-yard box to grab his own debut Division I goal.
Less than a minute later, Milan Iloski put the game out of reach with his league-high ninth tally of the year.
Junior midfielder Andrew Paoli set up that play, picking off a UCR pass in UCLA's offensive third, chesting the ball down and then finding Iloski in the box. From there, Milan settled the ball and drilled a left-footed shot inside the far post.
UCLA would go on to out-shoot UCR 10-5 for the match, doubling up the Highlanders in both the first and second halves. Ferch, Iloski, and Paoli all recorded two points in the triumph.
Freshman defender Eric Pearce made his NCAA debut in the win, playing the final 20 minutes of the game in the back.
The Bruins continue an eight-game homestand on Sunday evening, hosting Pac-12 rival San Diego State at 5:00 p.m.
Team Stats
Ferch, Riley (1)
Assisted By: Powell, Matthew
GOAL by UCLA Ferch, Riley (FIRST GOAL), Assist by Powell, Matthew, goal number 1 for season.
3:28
Michaelides, Constan (1)
Assisted By: Paoli, Andrew , Ferch, Riley
GOAL by UCLA Michaelides, Constan, Assist by Paoli, Andrew and Ferch, Riley, goal number 1 for season.
48:53
Iloski, Milan (9)
Assisted By: Paoli, Andrew
GOAL by UCLA Iloski, Milan, Assist by Paoli, Andrew, goal number 9 for season.
49:22
Ilic, Uros (1)
Assisted By: Mitiku, Matthew
GOAL by UCR Ilic, Uros, Assist by Mitiku, Matthew, goal number 1 for season.
89:00
