Soccer preps for the next step

Published: Wednesday, November 30, 1994

Bruins anticipating

quarterfinal match

against Charleston

By Tim Costner

Daily Bruin Senior Staff

In this weekend's NCAA quarter-final match, the UCLA men's soccer team will host a squad that has flirted with elimination even more than the Bruins have.

The College of Charleston has won both of its playoff games in sudden death overtime, first thwarting top-seeded UNC-Charlotte, 1-0, and then squeaking by North Carolina State, 5-4, the following week.

"They're winning and they're beating teams that they lost to earlier in the year," UCLA head coach Sigi Schmid said. "They're fit and if you look at their record, no one scores against them in the overtime periods. They've got six seniors in starting roles, so this is their last hurrah."

The Bruins, however, have out-scored their opponents 27-8 in the second half and 5-0 in overtime. The quarter-final game is Sunday at 1 p.m. on the North Soccer Field.

* * *

With his game-tying assist and game-winning goal against Southern Methodist last Sunday, midfielder Greg Vanney became the ninth player on the UCLA roster to tally at least 10 points this season, which has not been historically uncommon for the Bruins.

"If you look back, it's pretty common for how we spread around scoring," Schmid said. "Different people step up on different days, and that's what it shows. It means that it makes it tougher for us to get shut out. We did get shut out three games in a row but that's behind us. We're the leading scoring team in the playoffs, and we're happy about that."

* * *

Joe Christie has probably found the most difficult way to get to double-digits in scoring. The right winger has assisted a team-leading nine times this season but has just scored one goal, giving him 11 points on the season.

"I think I just look more to getting assists now than to score," Christie said. "I'll take my shots, but my coaches want me to stay out so far to the right that I get into the position to shoot. But, you know, I love my team all I want to do is to give my brothers love."

Christie's latest token of brotherly love was on the Bruins' first goal against SMU last weekend an assist to Adam Frye that gave UCLA a 1-0 lead.

* * *

It's funny how things work out. In the West region, the final two contenders are none other than Cal State Fullerton and No. 1 Indiana, two teams that played each other in UCLA's adidas/MetLife Classic about two months ago.

The Titans upstaged the Bruins that weekend by knocking the Hoosiers out of the top spot before UCLA even had a chance to play them.

So now the Hoosiers who eventually regained their position atop the rankings get a rematch against the Titans. But this time, the game will be held in Bloomington. What are the chances that Indiana is going to lose to Fullerton again when the game means a spot in the Final Four and the Hoosiers are the host? Slim at best.

Then again, Fullerton winded up in the Final Four last year and are pretty close to getting there again. Go figure.

* * *

With the Bruins' late-in-the-game win vs. SMU, Schmid amassed his 248th career victory last weekend, and has pushed his post-season record to 20-10.

And last weekend's win ranks among some of the best.

"It was definitely memorable," Schmid said. "There are few games when you score three goals in eight minutes maybe we've done it in a game where it didn't have the same impact. So being down 2-1 and coming back with three goals ranks up there with some of the great wins we've had."

And what does winning his 250th game mean to him?

"I care about winning it this year because if I win 250 games, it means we're in the final," Schmid said. "But all it really means is that I've coached for a long time, it means I'm getting older and getting gray hair. All of those things. We've had a lot of great players and have played pretty consistently and we've done it in a short period of time."