Bruins Welcome No. 14 LMU in Final Non-Conference Game of 2021

UCLA (7-4-0) vs. No. 14 Loyola Marymount (9-1-1)
Date/Time: Thursday, Oct. 14 - 7:00 p.m. (PT)
Location: Los Angeles, Calif. (Wallis Annenberg Stadium)
Stream: Pac-12.com / Pac-12 Now app
Stream Talent: Nick Koop
Live Stats

UCLA Welcomes No. 14 LMU For Final Non-Conference Game of 2021 Regular Season
The UCLA men's soccer team (7-4-0, 3-2-0 Pac-12) has just one game on the docket this week, hosting No. 14-ranked Loyola Marymount (9-1-1, 1-1-0 WCC) in a non-conference game at Wallis Annenberg Stadium on Thursday night at 7:00 p.m. PT. The contest will be streamed live on Pac-12.com/live and Pac-12 Insider (available on Roku, Sling, etc.). Fans can also follow along with live stats on uclalivestats.com and live updates via the team Twitter account, @UCLAMSoccer. 

Quick Hits

• UCLA has won seven of its last 10 games, including a pair of three-game winning streaks
• For the season, UCLA is outscoring its opponents 19-12 and outshooting them 116-96
• All but two of UCLA's 11 games this season have been decided by one goal
• The Bruins are 7-1 when scoring first, and 0-3 when the opponent scores first 

Diaz On a Roll
Senior F Kevin Diaz had a five-game point streak going before being held off the scoresheet last Friday. Over the streak, he amassed four goals and two assists for 10 points. He's the first Bruin with a five-game point streak since Milan Iloski opened the 2019 campaign with 16 points in five games (he led the NCAA in goals per game that year at 1.06). Diaz had never scored a goal in back-to-back games before his three-game streak from Sept. 25 to Oct. 3, and his previous career-long point streak was two games. His four goals on the year are tied for third in the Pac-12. 

On The Mark
So far this season, the Bruins have shown themselves to be adept at getting their shot attempts on target, with 59 of the team's 116 shots going on frame. UCLA's 51% shot accuracy as a team paces the Pac-12 Conference and ranks seventh in the country. 

The Series Against Loyola Marymount
UCLA holds a 26-3-1 advantage in the all-time head-to-head series with Loyla Marymount, but the Lions picked up the win in the most recent matchup between the two schools. This will be just the second time in the last 10 years that the Bruins have hosted LMU (UCLA W, 4-1, on Oct. 20, 2018). Since 2000, UCLA is 8-3-1 against LMU. 

Last Time Out Against LMU
The Bruins were edged by the Lions, 1-0, in the most-recent matchup between the two teams (Feb. 12, 2021 at LMU). The contest was UCLA's first road game of the spring 2021 season, while LMU was ranked No. 15 in the country at the time. Ronaldo Brown headed in a cross at the 30:29 mark to provide the game's lone score. The Bruins had their best chance to equalize in the 87th minute, as Kevin Diaz hit a 35-yard free kick that required a diving save from the LMU keeper. UCLA keeper Justin Garces posted five saves in the game, his second-highest single-game total of the spring season. 

The Week In Review
UCLA posted an exciting 1-0 win over San Diego State in the team's lone game last week, with Tucker Lepley notching a 98th minute golden goal to secure the overtime result. A high press from UCLA created the goal, with a challenge from Jose Contell forcing the Aztecs to cough the ball up to Riley Ferch just above the box. From there, Ferch played in a ball down the left side of the box for Lepley, who first-timed a left-footed shot under the keeper. UCLA outshot SDSU 16-6 for the contest, including a 12-3 advantage from the second half on. SDSU was held without a high-danger chance after a fourth-minute flurry was turned aside by Justin Garces. UCLA dominated the OT session, with Grade-A chances from Pietro Grassi and Contell preceding the Lepley winner. The Bruins had four shots in the extra session, compared to none for SDSU. 

Lepley Named to College Soccer News Team of the Week
On Monday afternoon, College Soccer News selected Tucker Lepley to its National Team of the Week. He was the lone player selected from the Pac-12 Conference. It was the first-career Team of the Week honor for Lepley, who was also a nominee for Pac-12 Player of the Week and UCLA Student-Athlete of the Week. 

Spreading It Around
Following his goal against SDSU, Tucker Lepley moved into a three-way tie alongside Tommy Silva and Kevin Diaz for the team lead in scoring (all three players have identical lines of 4-2-10). There are nine players in the Pac-12 with four or more goals, and there are also nine with 10+ points; Bruins account for one-third of both. UCLA is joined by Oregon State as the only two teams in the league to have three players among the top-10 in the league for goals or points. 

One Way or Another
UCLA is one of 56 teams in the country, and just two in the Pac-12 (Washington), without a draw on its result sheet this year.

Home Cooking
The Bruins have posted a 6-2-0 record in home games so this far this season, good for a .750 winning percentage. UCLA last posted a home winning percentage north of 60% in 2015 (9-3-0, .750). 

Four Bruins Make TopDrawerSoccer Midseason Top-100 Freshmen list
UCLA had four players make the top-100 in TopDrawerSoccer's midseason freshman player rankings: Pietro Grassi (No. 35), Aaron Edwards (65), Jose Contell (74), and Tucker Lepley (79). With four picks, the Bruins tied with Akron and SMU for the national lead. UCLA had had twice as many players on the list as any other Pac-12 school (San Diego State, Oregon State, and Washington had two apiece).

Slippery Silva
Entering the week, UCLA's Tommy Silva sits in a three-way tie for the Pac-12 lead in game-winning goals with three. He also ranks 15th nationally in that statistic. He led or co-led the league in total goals (4) for four weeks after notching his first career brace on Sept. 6 against CSUN. The Tucson, Ariz. native has six goals and 17 points over 23 career games at UCLA. 

Limiting Chances
UCLA held its opponent to single-digit shots in each of the first eight games of the season before Oregon State broke up that streak on Sept. 30. The Bruins have still allowed two shots on goal or fewer in over half of their games (6-11, 55%) and have conceded more than five SOGs just twice. 

Off The Board
After holding both UC Irvine and CSUN without a goal in early September, the Bruins recorded back-to-back shutouts for the first time since Oct. 4 and 7, 2018 against Washington and Oregon State, respectively. 

Bruins Helping Bruins
The Bruins have compiled 22 individual assists to this point of the season on 18 team goals. UCLA currently ranks 41st nationally in total assists. The Bruins have registered the full two assists on eight of the team's 15 goals scored in the run of play (53%). 12 separate Bruins have tallied a helper for UCLA, and eight have registered multiple assists. Jose Contell and Riley Ferch are tied for the team lead with three assists apiece. 

A Little Respite
UCLA is in the the midst of a stretch that sees the team play just two games over a 17-day span. That is the longest-such stretch for the team this season (previously: 13 days from Sept. 20 to Oct. 2 with games vs. UCR, at Oregon St.). 

Holding Them Off
UCLA allowed one goal or fewer in each of the first seven games of this season, a first for the program since Aug. 26 to Sept. 23, 2016. The Bruins haven't had a streak of eight games since 2012 (nine games). 

In The Polls
UCLA appeared at No. 3 in this week's United Soccer Coaches Far West Region poll, the sixth straight week the team has appeared in those rankings. UCLA was ranked No. 23 in the coaches poll in late September, the first time UCLA appeared in that top-25 since the 2018 season.