UCLA
Washington
UCLA Wins Thriller At Washington, 3-2
October 21, 2007 | Men's Soccer
Oct. 21, 2007
UCLA continued its winning ways, winning its third-straight Pac-10 game with a 3-2 victory at the University of Washington on Sunday afternoon. Sophomore midfielder Kyle Nakazawa scored the game-winning goal with just 53 seconds left in regulation.
The play started when defensive midfielder Danny Suits played a long ball to Chance Myers, who one-timed to Nakazawa in the middle. Nakazawa passed to Jason Leopoldo on the left, and Leopoldo blew past a Husky defender in the box and crossed to a crashing Nakazawa at the goalmouth. Nakazawa one-timed it past Husky goalkeeper Stephen Fung for the game-winner at 89:07, Nakazawa's first goal of the season.
The Bruins got on the scoreboard first after a Taylor Mueller foul in the box gave UCLA a penalty kick at 10:08. Bruin sophomore Michael Stephens successfully converted the PK for the 1-0 lead. Washington equalized at the 41:42 mark on a 20-yard shot from Ellis McLoughlin.
UCLA regained the lead in the second half after Nakazawa assisted on a Myers goal at 59:35, but the Huskies were quick to strike back. At 61:23, Raphael Cox sent a free kick into the top of the box that found Derek Crismier for a header past UCLA goalkeeper Brian Perk for the equalizer.
The two teams battled furiously for the go-ahead goal, with Perk making two big stops on a pair of Raphael Cox shots in the 64th minute. Cox's first shot came from point-blank range, and Perk not only stopped that but stopped the follow-up shot as well. Fung made a big save on a Myers shot in the 73rd minute, and Perk saved shots by McLoughlin and Crismier in the 85th and 86th minutes before Nakazawa's game-winner. The Huskies had one final chance to send the game to overtime, but Matt Van Houten's shot with 30 seconds left was saved by Perk.
The two teams were fairly even statistically, with each team recording 18 shots, 10 on goal. Perk totaled eight saves for the Bruins, while Fung recorded seven. UCLA had a 5-2 advantage in corner kicks.
UCLA improves its record to 7-5-2, 3-1-1 in the Pac-10, and now has a four-game unbeaten streak. Washington drops to 6-6-2, 1-3-1 in the Pac-10. The Bruins' win, coupled with San Diego State's 2-0 loss at Oregon State, lifts UCLA to first place in the Pac-10 standings with 10 points at the halfway mark.
