:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/43306144/B1fDcY-IYAALX7Y.0.0.jpg)
THEY DID IT!
Staying aggressive. That's how @CalMensSoccer beat #1, and how Connor Hallisey earned #CALvsUCLA Play of the Match: http://t.co/Dk3M2gbhQs
— Pac-12 Networks (@Pac12Networks) November 3, 2014
Bears sweeps the season series against the Bruins. This is also the 2nd straight year that the Bears leave Drake Stadium with a victory.
***************************************************************************************************
No.17 Cal Men's Soccer (9-3-1, 3-2-1 in Pac-12) at No.1 UCLA (10-3-4, 5-1-2 in Pac-12)
When: 5 PM PT
TV: Pac-12 Networks
Notice that 1 in the loss column of UCLA's conference record, that was us.
Back on Friday, October 10th, this happened:
Christian Thierjung's goal is an OT winner, an upset springer and a #12Best nominee for @CalMensSoccer! #UCLAvsCAL http://t.co/OptrizfjJm
— Pac-12 Networks (@Pac12Networks) October 10, 2014
The Golden Bears will look to build on their big win at San Diego State on Thursday night (and back to back unbeaten streak on the road, if you go back to the draw at Stanfurd), when they take on the Bruins at Drake today.
If the Bears have any kind of conference aspiration, this is a must-win. This conference of merely 6 teams actually have 5 teams that have been ranked in the top 25 this year (Oregon State has since slipped out). So winning the conference, a feat that the 2013 squad that was ranked No.1 in the nation for the bulk of the year did not achieve, would be huge.
Let's look at the Pac-12 table:
Pac-12 Men's soccer table
| Teams | Pts | Conf | Overall |
|---|---|---|---|
 UCLA
|
17 | 5-1-2 | 10-3-4 |
 WASHINGTON
|
13 | 4-2-1 | 11-3-1 |
 STANFORD
|
9 | 2-1-3 | 9-2-3 |
 CALIFORNIA
|
10 | 3-2-1 | 9-3-1 |
 OREGON STATE
|
7 | 2-4-1 | 9-6-1 |
 SAN DIEGO STATE
|
3 | 1-7-0 | 7-10-0 |
I'm not sure why Furd is listed ahead of Cal in this table, given both teams have played the same number of matches. Anyhow, UCLA has played one extra match than the rest, so if the Bears can pull off a big road win tonight, they will move to being 4 points behind UCLA with one less game played.
This is actually the last regularly schedule road match of the season for the Bears. If there is any reason to be optimistic about the Bears winning the conference, Cal do sport a perfect 6-0 home record this year.
Can the high power Golden Bears offense that has recently been slowed down on the road (only 1 goal at Furd and just 2 at San Diego State) get back to their habit of dropping 3 goals (or more)?
With the graduation of Steve Birnbaum and early departure of Cristian Dean to MLS (the 2nd and 3rd overall picks in the MLS draft this year), the Bears have had some big holes to fill on their backline. Trevor Haberkorn has done a good job filling in for that. His absence for the bulk of the Furd game due to a bad cut on his head was partially to blame why the Bears allowed Stanfurd to get off 31 shots. Cal goalie Justin Taillole is one of the hardest working keeper in the country. While his goal against average looks kind of mediocre, it doesn't reflect his ability to make the big saves when it matters.
Nevertheless, the Bears play a wide open style that tries to utilize their speed all around, lead by Conor Hallisey's 24 points (7 goals, 10 assists) and Stefano Bonomo (8 goals and 2 assists). This should be a fun match again.
GO BEARS!