Nov. 17, 2010

Complete Release in PDF Format

This Week - Eighth-seeded UCLA (14-4-1) will participate in its 28th consecutive NCAA Tournament, opening up play with a second round home game against MPSF champion Sacramento State (11-4-7) on Sunday, Nov. 21 at 5 pm. The game will take place at Drake Stadium. Tickets are $10 for adults/$8 for students and youth and can be purchased at the door.

Live Coverage - A free audio broadcast as well as Gametracker live stats will be available for Sunday's game at uclabruins.com. Calling the action on Sunday will be Dave Marcus, Mike Sondheimer and Naomi Manea.

Bruins Reach Tournament For 28th Consecutive Year - UCLA earned its 28th consecutive and 38th overall NCAA Tournament berth with an at-large berth and No. 8 seeding in the Tournament. UCLA's NCAA streak is the second-longest active streak in the nation, and the 38 NCAA appearances are second only to Saint Louis' 46. UCLA has an all-time NCAA Tournament record of 62-34 with national championships in 1985, 1990, 1997 and 2002.

UCLA vs. Tournament Field - The Bruins have played five games against NCAA Tournament teams this season, going 2-3 with a 1-0 win at a neutral site against ninth-seeded Notre Dame Maryland and a 1-0 double overtime win at sixth-seeded California. UCLA has losses to 14th-seeded Indiana on the road, UC Santa Barbara on the road and Cal in overtime at home.

In The Rankings - UCLA finished the regular season ranked No. 7 by Soccer America and No. 8 by the NSCAA. The Bruins are also ranked No. 7 by College Soccer News, No. 6 by Top Drawer Soccer and No. 9 by Soccer Times. In the NCAA RPI, UCLA finished the regular season No. 8.

How They Got Here: UCLA - UCLA received an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament after finishing in second place by one point in the Pac-10 Conference behind sixth-seeded California. The Bruins earned a Top 8 seed, their second consecutive, by virtue of their 14-4-1 overall record and 8-2-0 conference record. UCLA finished the season with four straight road wins and victories in six of its last seven games.

How They Got Here: Sacramento State - Sacramento State won the MPSF's automatic bid for the second consecutive year after defeating Cal State Bakersfield, 2-1, in overtime of the championship match of the MPSF Tournament. Rory O'Day scored the winning goal in the 94th minute. The Hornets were the No. 5 seed in the conference tournament after finishing with a 2-2-6 MPSF record. Chris Bettencourt, the Hornets' leading scorer (10g, 5a) was named the MVP of the MPSF Tournament.

The Series With Sacramento State - UCLA leads the all-time series with the Hornets, 5-0, and won the last meeting in the NCAA second round a year ago, 2-1. UCLA took a 1-0 lead in the first half on a penalty kick at 30:30. Sac State evened up the score with 15:38 left in the game when Max Alvarez curled a long-distance shot into the upper left corner, but UCLA's Chandler Hoffman scored the game-winning goal five minutes later, slipping in a shot to the left corner at the 79:21 mark.

Last Time Out For UCLA - The Bruins ended the regular season with a 3-1 tie win at San Diego State. Andy Rose, Chandler Hoffman and Reed Williams scored for UCLA, and goalkeeper Brian Rowe made seven saves, including one on a penalty kick in the 87th minute.

Kelyn Rowe Named Pac-10 Freshman Of The Year - Midfielder Kelyn Rowe became the second consecutive and fifth overall Bruin player to be named the Pac-10's Freshman of Year. Rowe joins Amobi Okugo (2009), Sal Zizzo (2005), Chad Barrett (2003) and Alex Yi (2000) as the other Bruins to win the postseason accolade. Rowe leads the Bruin in assists (8) and is second in points (20) and goals (6). He was also named to the All-Pac-10 first team and is the only freshman to earn first-team honors.

Nine Bruins Named To All-Pac-10 Squad - UCLA landed nine players on the 2010 All-Pac-10 teams, including two on the first team. Receiving first-team all-conference honors were Pac-10 Freshman of the Year Kelyn Rowe and junior midfielder/defender Andy Rose. Junior midfielder Eder Arreola, freshman forward Victor Chavez, junior goalkeeper Brian Rowe and junior defender Shawn Singh received second-team acclaim. Sophomore midfielders Ryan Hollingshead and Evan Raynr and freshman forward Reed Williams picked up honorable mention nods.

School Record Six Bruins Earn Pac-10 All-Academic Honors - An all-time program-best six UCLA men's soccer players were selected to the Pac-10 All-Academic teams. Sophomore forward Chandler Hoffman earned first-team honors. Sophomore midfielders Ryan Hollingshead and Evan Raynr were named to the second team, and juniors Andy Rose, Brian Rowe and Shawn Singh received honorable mention acclaim.

May We Assist You? - Midfielders Kelyn Rowe and Eder Arreola are climbing up the Pac-10 leaderboard for assists, with each ranking in the Top 5 in the conference. Rowe ranks third in the conference with eight assists, while Arreola is fourth with a career-high seven. In addition to Rowe's eight assists, he also has six goals and has thus had a hand in nearly half of UCLA's 30 goals this year. Six of Arreola's seven assists have come in conference play, and he ranks second in the Pac-10 in that category for conference games-only.

NCAA Experience - Eight Bruin regulars, including five starters, have experience in NCAA Tournament play. Junior Andy Rose is the most experienced of the group, having played and started in four NCAA games in his career. He had the game-tying assist in a 2-1 third round win over UC Santa Barbara in 2009. Sophomores Chandler Hoffman and Ryan Hollingshead played in all three tournament games a year ago, and each one scored the game-winning goal in the two Bruin victories. Hoffman netted the game-winner against Sacramento State in the second round, and Hollingshead scored the game-winner against UCSB in the third round. Other Bruin regulars with NCAA games under their belts are Shawn Singh (three starts), Eder Arreola (two games, one start), Zack Zerrenner (one game, one start), Michael Roman (three games), and Evan Raynr (three games).