UCLA
San Diego State
Bruins Ready for Regular Season Finale at SDSU
November 09, 2017 | Men's Soccer
UCLA vs. San Diego State
San Diego, Calif. (SDSU Sports Deck)
Saturday, Nov. 11, 2017 – 7 p.m. (PT)
Live Stream: GoAztecs.com
Live Stats: GoAztecs.com
Follow @UCLAMSoccer
Bruins Set for Regular Season Finale at San Diego State
UCLA will end the regular season on Saturday when they travel to San Diego State to take on the Aztecs at 7 p.m. PT from the SDSU Sports Deck. The match will be live streamed on GoAztecs.com.
Tough Road
The Bruins have played one of the toughest schedules in the country this season. UCLA currently ranks eighth in the NCAA in cumulative opponents winning percentage at .593, the highest in the Pac-12 conference, with the next highest being Oregon State at No. 65. They are also the highest ranked non-ACC school in the nation. The Bruins have played seven ranked opponents this season and have gone 1-5-1 in those contests.
Packing Drake
The Bruins played its final home game of the season on Oct. 29 and had one of its best attended home seasons. Over 16,000 fans saw UCLA play its seven home matches this season at Drake Stadium, averaging just under 2300 fans per contest and ranks ninth in the NCAA. It is the largest average attendance since the team moved to Marshall Field for the 2000 season and the fifth highest total attendance.
Iloski's Dominance
Senior forward Brian Iloski leads the Bruins with six goals this season, including three game-winners and is ranked 42nd in the nation in game-winning goals with three. He is also top-10 in the Pac-12 in points (15), points per game (1.00), goals (6), goals per game (0.4), shots (39) and shots per game (2.6). Iloski was named honorable mention to Top Drawer Soccer's Team of the Week after the first week of the season when he recorded his first career brace with the Bruins at San Francisco in the season opener.
Pac-12 Leaders
With the Pac-12 conference season heading into its final weekend, several UCLA players rank inside the top-10 statistically in conference play. Senior Brian Iloski is third during Pac-12 play in shots per game (2.88) and is fourth in shots (23). Freshman Milan Iloski is top-10 in game-winning goals (2), points (8), points per game (1.00), goals (3), goals per game (0.38), assists (2) and assists per game (0.25). Alex Knox and Anderson Asiedu are also in the top-10 in goals and goals per game.
Career Night for Knox
Sophomore transfer Alex Knox had one of the top individual performances of the season on Oct. 26 as he recorded five points with two goals and an assist to help the Bruins defeat Oregon State, 5-0. Knox, a transfer from Wake Forest, came into the match having only one assist on the season before scoring his first goals as a member of UCLA and tallying his second assist. He has played in 15 matches, making 10 starts, and is now third on the team in points with six.
Iloski to Iloski to Iloski
Against San Diego State on Oct. 15, all three Iloski brothers played a part in the game-winning goal in overtime. Brian Iloski started the play by passing to Milan Iloski toward the goal line, who then found Eric Iloski at the top of the box as his strong shot beat the outstretched arms of the keeper to the left post. It is the first time this season all three brothers were involved in a goal.
Silva Reaches Century Mark
Sophomore goalkeeper Kevin Silva surpassed the 100 career save mark as he currently sits at 121 in his two seasons in Westwood. Silva has posted four shutouts this season, including three during Pac-12 play, and posted a season-high seven saves at Georgetown earlier this season.
Midseason Honors
Last week Top Drawer Soccer announced its Midseason top 100 player list and a pair of Bruins made the list. Junior captain Erik Holt moved up four spots from the preseason to No. 54, while leading scorer Brian Iloski jumped from No. 74 in the preseason to No. 72 on the midseason list. Four Bruins also made the Freshman Top 100 player list - Brandon Terwege (No. 33), Santiago Herrera (No. 41), Milan Iloski (No. 62) and Eric Iloski (No. 68).
New Players Making an Impact
The Bruins have had a number of new faces to the team make an impact already in their first seasons in Westwood. Freshman forward Milan Iloski was named Pac-12 Player of the Week on Oct. 10 after collecting three points over a two-game stretch on the road. Freshman Santiago Herrera is second on the team with seven points and also second on the team with three goals. Sophomore transfer Alex Knox is third on the team with six points after scoring twice and picking up an assist against Oregon State on Oct. 26. Freshman Eric Iloski scored his first goal in overtime on Sunday to defeat San Diego State, while junior transfer Anderson Asiedu also scored his first career goal with the Bruins in the win. Freshman Eirik Baekkelund scored in his collegiate debut against San Francisco, while sophomore transfer Roman Martin netted his first career goal with the Bruins against the Beavers at home. Freshman defender Brandon Terwege and freshman midfielder Andrew Paoli made their first career starts, while Tobi Henneke recorded his first career cap.
Scouting the Aztecs
San Diego State comes into its regular season finale with a 5-13-0 overall record, including a 0-9-0 mark in Pac-12 play. The Aztecs have only scored three goals during conference play and are averaging more than 2.5 goals allowed per conference game. Jeroen Meefout leads the SDSU offense in goals (7), assists (3) and points (17) this season, while Winston Sorhaitz and Tevenn Roux each has two goals. Adam Allmaras has played 17 games in goal for SDSU and holds a 1.72 goals-against average with 63 saves this season.
Last Time Against San Diego State
UCLA earned a 2-1 overtime win over SDSU on Oct. 15 at Drake Stadium that marked its third-straight Pac-12 conference win. The Bruins were the aggressors for most of the match but were unable to score the match's first goal until the 83rd minute when Anderson Asiedu netted his first goal as a member of UCLA. The Aztecs sent the match to overtime in dramatic fashion as they scored with just two seconds left in regulation when Ilai Shvika collected a pass in the box of his chest and hit a brilliant shot into the far corner. UCLA found the golden goal in the 95th minute when the three Iloski brothers played a role in the game winner. Brian Iloski passed to Milan Iloski towards the goal line who then found Eric Iloski at the top of the box and his low shot beat the keeper for the first of his UCLA career.
Last Time Out
UCLA fell on Sunday on the road at California in a back-and-forth battle, 3-2. Milan Iloski and Anderson Asiedu each found game-tying goals during the second half, but the Golden Bears were able to respond each time within on minute to keep the one-goal advantage for most of the match. Iloski netted his third goal of the season and Asiedu registered his second.
National Teams
UCLA has a plethora of national team players on its 2017 squad with various U.S. Youth National Teams experience in their career - Christian Chavez (YNT), Cameron Douglas (U-18), Erik Holt (U-17, U-14), Brian Iloski (U-20, U-18), Milan Iloski (U-19, U-18), Malcolm Jones (U-20, U-18, U-17, U-15, U-14), Robert Knights (U-18), Andrew Paoli (U-18, U-16), Kevin Silva (U-19, U-17) and Brandon Terwege (U-20, U-19). In addition, Tobi Henneke played with the German U-16 National Team.
Happy Anniversary
UCLA is celebrating a pair of anniversaries this season as it is the 15th anniversary of its 2002 national championship and the 20th anniversary of its 1997 national title run.
- On Dec. 15, 2002 in Dallas, Texas, Aaron Lopez would one-time a free kick from Ryan Futagaki in to the back of the net with just 1:02 remaining on the clock for the match's lone goal. Lopez was named the MVP of the College Cup, while teammates Zach Wells, who earned a shutout in the title game, Adolfo Gregorio, Matt Taylor and Scot Thompson received All-Tournament acclaim. First-year head coach Tom Fitzgerald became just the second coach in NCAA soccer history to win a Division I national title in his first season with the program.
- Facing Virginia in their home state, the Bruins picked up their third NCAA national championship on Dec. 14, 1997. Despite several key injuries throughout the season and the postseason run, head coach Sigi Schmid devised a more defensive, counterattacking style that frustrated the Cavaliers the entire game. In the 80th minute UCLA capitalized on an error as Martin Bruno found Offensive MVP Seth George who beat the keeper one-on-one for the go-ahead score. George would then score two minutes later to secure the title for the Bruins.
50 Years of UCLA Men's Soccer
UCLA men's soccer enters its 50th season as an NCAA sport with an all-time record of 758-202-106 (.764). Under head coach Dennis Storer, UCLA went 12-1-1 in its first season associated with the NCAA in 1967, tallying an 5-0 win over Cal Poly Pomona in its first game, along with a 8-1 win over USC during an 11-match winning streak. UCLA earned its first NCAA Tournament appearance just one year later and collected its first postseason victory in 1970. Since then, the Bruins have made a total of 44 appearances in the NCAA tournament, including 34 consecutive trips dating back to 1983. UCLA has advanced to nine NCAA championship games and has been crowned national champion four times (1985, 1990, 1997 and 2002).
