UCLA
5-8-2, 1-5-1
Oregon State
7-5-1, 4-2-1
UCLA Comeback Falls Just Short in 3-2 Loss to Oregon St.
October 27, 2019 | Men's Soccer
LOS ANGELES – The UCLA men's soccer team was dealt a 3-2 loss by visiting Oregon State on Sunday in the regular season home finale at Wallis Annenberg Stadium.
The Bruins (5-8-2, 1-5-1) outshot the Beavers (7-5-1, 4-2-1) by a margin of 15-5 in the contest but couldn't always capitalize on their offensive opportunities.
Oregon State opened the scoring in the sixth minute, and opened up a two-goal lead with a pair of goals in the 64th and 69th minutes.
UCLA would go on to pull a goal back after junior forward Milan Iloski scored on a PK at the 77:10 mark. The team would continue to apply offensive pressure, but ultimately couldn't produce an equalizer.
"I thought we created a ton of opportunities and just failed to put the finishing touch on it," said UCLA head coach Ryan Jorden. "We outshot them, but I'd say we missed opportunities to put another 6-10 chances on top of that number. That's us just not executing well enough in moments in where we know better."
The two teams battled to a 1-1 tie over the opening 45 minutes.
OSU opened the scoring at the 5:19 mark as Joel Walker took on a pair of defenders deep on the right side and picked out Gloire Amanda at the far post with a pinpoint cross. That would turn out to be the Beavers' lone shot of the first half.
The Bruins enjoyed the majority of the possession over the remainder of the half, resulting in a 6-0 edge in both shots and corners. UCLA would eventually capitalize on one of those corners to level the score at 1-1.
In the 43rd minute, senior midfielder Alexis Triadis played a short corner to sophomore midfielder Riley Ferch. A couple feet away from the corner of the 18-yard box, Ferch swung in a cross to the back post where senior defender Matthew Powell was waiting to re-direct it into the net with a header. It was the Castro Valley, Calif. native's second goal of the season and career-high eighth point of the year.
After the halftime break, the Bruins continued to be on the ball for a majority of time but OSU took control of the game with a pair of quick strikes. Adrian Crespo put the Beavers up for good after finishing off a low Walker cross in the 64th minute, then Walker netted the game-winning goal himself at the 68:40 mark.
Another UCLA corner – the Bruins had 13 corners compared to OSU's one in the game – ultimately resulted in a second Bruin score. With the corner coming into the box, a Beaver defender used his forearm to deflect the ball away resulting in a UCLA penalty kick. Iloski stepped up and nailed the PK for his league-leading 16th goal of the year.
The Bruins came close a number of times to tying it over the remainder of the game. Triadis played in a pair of low crosses that were inches away from being tap-ins, and junior defender Ruben Soria had a close-range shot off a set piece pushed over the bar by OSU keeper Adrian Fernandez in the 86th minute.
At halftime, UCLA's four seniors – Powell, Triadis, forward Blayne Martinez, and midfielder Roman Martin – were honored in a Senior Day ceremony.
The Bruins are on the road for the remainder of their regular season schedule. This upcoming week, they travel to play Cal on Thursday and Stanford on Sunday.
Team Stats
Amanda, Gloire (2)
Assisted By: Walker, Joel
GOAL by OSU Amanda, Gloire (FIRST GOAL), Assist by Walker, Joel, goal number 2 for season.
5:19
Powell, Matthew (2)
Assisted By: Triadis, Alexis , Ferch, Riley
GOAL by UCLA Powell, Matthew, Assist by Triadis, Alexis and Ferch, Riley, goal number 2 for season.
42:05
Crespo, Adrian (4)
Assisted By: Walker, Joel
GOAL by OSU Crespo, Adrian, Assist by Walker, Joel, goal number 4 for season.
63:06
Walker, Joel (6)
Assisted By: Djeffal, Sofiane
GOAL by OSU Walker, Joel, Assist by Djeffal, Sofiane, goal number 6 for season.
68:40
Iloski, Milan (16)
UCLA Iloski, Milan PENALTY KICK GOAL.
77:10
