Los Angeles, Calif. - Eighth-seeded UCLA scored four
unanswered goals in a 30-minute span in the second half and ousted Sacramento
State, 4-1, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at Drake Stadium on
Sunday night. Sophomore forward Chandler Hoffman extended his scoring streak to
four games with two goals, and freshmen Reed Williams and Victor Chavez also
scored for the Bruins.
The first half was a scoreless but entertaining affair that
saw a few big saves by Sacramento State goalkeeper Cesar Castillo and a
clearance off the line by UCLA defender Joe Sofia. The Bruins averted a
first-half deficit at the 33:31 mark when a shot by Hornet midfielder Fernando
Cabadas hit the left post and ricocheted off UCLA goalkeeper Brian Rowe's arm
away from danger.
UCLA exploded in the second half for four goals. Hoffman
netted his first of the night at 54:40. Kelyn Rowe started the play with a shot
that was blocked. Evan Raynr got to the ball and fired a shot from the right
side, and Castillo made a kick save on the shot, but the ball ricocheted off
Hoffman in front of the goal and went in.
Williams doubled up UCLA's score at 57:24 with his fifth
goal of the year, with Kelyn Rowe getting the assist. Hoffman got his second
goal of the game and fifth of the season at 72:44 after a textbook breakaway.
Williams got free on the left side and sent a pass to Raynr up the middle.
Raynr sent a ball to Hoffman on the right side, and he split two Hornet
defenders and shot past Castillo to the left corner. Chavez rounded out UCLA's
scoring with an impressive goal at 84:14, his team-leading ninth of the season.
With a Hornet defender guarding him closely, Chavez back-heeled the ball, spun
his defender and hit a shot to the right corner of the goal while falling down.
Ryan Hollingshead and Zack Foxhoven earned the assists.
Sacramento State got a goal of its own in the 87th minute on
a 20-yard shot by Ernesto Carranza, but it was too little too late for the
Hornets, who finished their season 11-5-7.
"We started out the game a little bit slowly,"
said UCLA head coach Jorge Salcedo. "I thought some of the guys seemed
nervous, and it took us a little bit to get going, but in the second half how
can you not be happy with four goals? Our production in front of goal in the
second half was very good."
With the win, UCLA (15-4-1) advances to the NCAA third
round, where it will face Dartmouth (12-6-1), a 2-1 overtime winner over
ninth-seeded Notre Dame. The third round contest will take place at Drake
Stadium on Sunday, Nov. 28 at 5 pm.
