The victories have not come easily for the No. 12 UCLA men’s soccer team this season. It has had to fight hard for every one of its four wins.

The fight will continue this weekend as the Bruins begin their quest for a third-straight Pac-10 Championship title at Drake Stadium Friday against Oregon State and Sunday against Washington.

Though Washington (6-3-1) is only ranked No. 24 in the country and Oregon State (5-4-1) was picked to finish last in the Pac-10 in the coaches’ poll at the beginning of the season, coach Jorge Salcedo has reiterated to his Bruins that they must come prepared to play.

He does not want the team to feel too confident, regardless of the fact that UCLA (4-1-2) swept both teams last year.

In fact, UCLA has defeated the Beavers in its last four meetings, the most recent game being a 5-0 victory last November.

“We know every game in conference is a tough one,” Salcedo said. “I’m sure they’ll come in with confidence and we’ll have to be prepared to battle and match their intensity level and find a way to win. We have to respect our opponents but not fear them.”

In order to win, the Bruins are going to have to find a way to score. So far, UCLA has edged its opponents by a narrow goal margin of 10-6.

In the last two games combined, both of which resulted in a tie, the Bruins managed to score just one goal.

In contrast, Oregon State leads the Pac-10 in shots, goals and assists and is in the midst of a five-game unbeaten streak, and have recorded victories over then-No. 25 St. Bonaventure and No. 21 Rhode Island.

A key member of the Beavers who the Bruins will have to contain will be sophomore forward Robbie Findley, who leads the Pac-10 in scoring with five goals.

One of the adjustments Salcedo made in the past weeks was moving Bruin senior Mike Enfield from midfielder to forward in order to create more scoring opportunities. It has paid off.

In his first game at the forward position, against Northridge on September 17, Enfield scored a pair of goals.

“[The switch] creates some good opportunities from deeper in the field,” Salcedo said. “We’ve been really happy with that.”

Sunday’s game against Washington presents an even larger challenge for the Bruins. The Huskies present a balanced attack, with eight different players scoring Washington’s 15 goals this season.

At the UNLV Invitational two weeks ago, the Huskies beat then-No. 13 Creighton 2-1, a team which the Bruins subsequently lost 3-2 at the same tournament.

The Huskies have also proven they cannot be overlooked with a victory over then-No. 5 Connecticut.

Because of their less-than-stellar start, Salcedo and the Bruins feel up to the challenge and are eager to begin conference play.

“The guys are excited to play [tonight],” Salcedo said. “We’re ready.”