Adapt and overcome.
The Bruins had to do just that for almost a full 90 minutes.
UCLA men’s soccer (3-1-4, 0-1-2 Big Ten) tied 2-2 with No. 4 Maryland (6-1-1, 1-1-1) in College Park on Friday. The Bruins managed to escape with a point toward Big Ten play despite two setbacks.
After starting the season undefeated, UCLA has yet to record a Big Ten win. And with a top-five team on the docket, the squad faced immediate pressure.
Five minutes into the match, Terrapins forward Rodrigo Neri chased down a through ball behind the Bruins’ backline, slotting it past senior goalkeeper Wyatt Nelson and into the back of the net to give the Terrapins a 1-0 lead.
Just a few minutes in, the Bruins already had a deficit to overcome.
UCLA quickly looked to rebound, with senior forward Oliver Roche colliding with the arms of goalkeeper Laurin Mack to knock the ball out of the latter’s hands and into the back of the net before being ruled a foul.
Both goalkeepers were forced to be active, with Mack recording six saves – tied for his season-high mark. In just his second appearance for the Bruins this year, Nelson had five saves to bring his season total to six.
But despite a solid performance in the goal for Maryland, UCLA was still able to convert.
A bad pass from the Terrapins allowed the Bruin defense to intercept the ball and build from the midfield. Sophomore midfielder Ander Marticorena found junior midfielder Jaime Amaro with no defenders around.
Amaro took a few touches forward and ripped a shot from the top of the box, past the outstretched hands of Mack and into the bottom right of the goal to level the playing field.
“When Ander took the ball in the third part of the field and he passed me the ball, it felt so great because I was driving all the way right to the box,” Amaro said. “And whenever I got into the box, I knew that the ball was in, and honestly, (I’m) so excited to get my second goal with UCLA, and I hope that I will take more.”
Still, the hits kept coming against the Bruins.
Thirty minutes into the match, Neri was streaking toward the goal before a knock from fifth-year midfielder Diego Martinez slowed his pace and allowed Nelson to clear the ball. With Martinez interrupting Neri’s path and disrupting a clear goal-scoring opportunity, the original yellow card was upgraded to a red card after a VAR review.
Down a man with 60 minutes remaining, the Bruins had been dealt another bad hand.
The last time UCLA was handed a red card, it dropped its first conference game of the season 3-1 to Rutgers. And with the Terrapins holding a one-man advantage, the Bruins had an even tougher job.
“We obviously didn’t like conceding early, but our response was incredible,” said coach Ryan Jorden. “I thought we were really, really good through the 30-minute mark, and obviously we didn’t like conceding the goal, but the fact that we clawed our way right back into it, and we’re in control, and we’re getting the better of the chances and controlling it was great.”
The score stayed knotted until Jorden’s squad came out in full attack mode to start the second half. Less than 10 minutes into the final frame, the Bruins were lining up for their fourth corner kick of the half, a mark that finished 11-8 in favor of the Terrapins.
Sophomore midfielder Adrian Aguilar sent the ball in the air to the top of the six-yard box, where it found the head of 6-foot-3 fifth-year defender Victor Ciaurriz for his first goal donning the blue and gold. Aguilar’s assist brought his tally to four on the season – double the next closest Bruin.
Ciaurriz was returning for his first game since UCLA’s loss against Rutgers, where he received a red card and had to sit out the following match against Michigan. A consistent weapon for the Bruins, he has started every game except for the one against the Wolverines.
The Bruins’ comeback magic seemed to be in full effect – until the end of the game.
With 10 players tasked with defending a top-notch team, exhaustion seemed to hit. Nine of Maryland’s 24 shots came in the final 15 minutes, including one that knotted it all up.
A scramble inside the box led to Maryland forward Dominic Ayella finding the back of the net and equalizing the scoreboard with 13 minutes remaining. The Terrapins continued to be in attack mode, forcing Nelson to make two of his five crucial saves.
Despite both teams attacking in attempts to capture a goal and three points toward Big Ten play, the final whistle blew to solidify a 2-2 draw.
“I appreciate all the guys doing a lot of work last night and tying the game and then going up with a man down and then we fought our way, but then losing it in the last couple minutes of the game was just disappointing,” Roche said. “Looking back at it, it was a really good performance from us, given we were a man down and were able to go up by one.”
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