Oregon State
UCLA
UCLA Holds On For 2-1 Win Over Men's Soccer
October 26, 2012 | Men's Soccer
Oct. 26, 2012
CORVALLIS, Ore. - The Oregon State men's soccer team battled with No. 7 UCLA on Friday afternoon at Paul Lorenz Field, but the Bruins' two-goal first half stood up as UCLA earned a 2-1 conference win.
Trailing 2-0 in the second half, senior Emery Welshman cut the deficit in half by outworking a Bruin defender and beating UCLA keeper Earl Edwards to the right side in the 67th minute. Later in the half, Welshman again had the ball at his feet inside the penalty area but was moved forcibly off it by a Bruin defender. The call for a penalty kick did not go OSU's way on that occasion, and UCLA was able to hold off the Beavers to seal the victory.
"The guys had a better spirit and effort in the second half and we got the one goal," head coach Steve Simmons said. "And to be honest, any time Emery gets the ball in the box, guys are just grabbing him. He's just too quick."
UCLA opened the scoring in the 17th minute on a crossing pass from Ryan Hollingshead that was knocked home by Victor Chavez. Just before halftime in the 42nd minute, Hollingshead took a lead pass from Chris Cummings and beat keeper Matt Bersano from inside the box.
Despite the two goals, Bersano played an excellent match, making seven saves. That ties a career high, originally set against UC Santa Barbara in August. Welshman's goal was his 10th of the season, making him the first Beaver since Danny Mwanga in 2009 to reach double-digit goals.
The Beavers return to the pitch Sunday afternoon as they host San Diego State at 2:00 p.m. The game will be televised on the Pac-12 Networks. OSU defeated SDSU, 1-0, on Oct. 7 in San Diego.
