UCSB challenged No. 3 UCLA to a 1-1 halftime draw on Sunday, but like an elite team can do, the Bruins elevated their game to the next level in the second half and came away with a 3-1 victory over the Gauchos at Harder Stadium.
![Cory Yoshida and the Gauchos faced their second top-10 team of the preseason on Sunday in No. 3 UCLA](https://presidiosports.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/Yoshida2web.jpg)
Cory Yoshida and the Gauchos faced their second top-10 team of the preseason on Sunday in No. 3 UCLA
Sydney Leroux scored twice for UCLA.
“It was awesome to come in here because we know that they’re always going to give us a hard time,” said Leroux, one of the country’s top goal scorers with 10 in 10 games this season. “They’re a very physical team, very aggressive, and they came out to play. In the first half, we weren’t really ready for that.”
![UCLA's Sydney Leroux](https://presidiosports.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/Leroux.jpg)
UCLA’s Sydney Leroux
UCSB’s Erin Ortega gave the Gauchos an equalizing goal in the 43rd minute after Leroux scored her first just four and a half minutes into the match. Alissa Sanchez crossed a ball to the near post and Ortega leaped to connect, heading it across the goal where it deflected off the left goal post and in.
BOX SCORE – – GAUCHO TEAM PAGE
UCLA (8-1-1) quickly dispelled any notion of a Gaucho upset in the second half with goals in the 50th and 63rd minutes. While Santa Barbara outshot the Bruins in the first half 5-4, that changed to an 8-2 UCLA advantage in the second frame.
“It’s possible they got a little talking to at halftime,” said UCSB head coach Paul Stumpf, a nod of respect to UCLA head coach Jillian Ellis, who has won over 80 percent of her matches in 11 seasons as the Bruins coach.
“They came out clearly flying – high-pressure, high energy – a lot more than they did in the first half and I don’t think we did a very good job of recognizing it.”
Even still, Stumpf thinks his Gauchos (3-6-1) are in good shape with their next game being the Big West Conference opener against UC Irvine.
“At this point, non-conference is all about preparing your team for the conference schedule,” said Stumpf, whose team has now faced two top-10 teams and three other teams receiving votes in the coaches poll in the pre-season. “I would say, from our first game, to our last game, we’ve made constant improvement and I’d say we’re ready for conference.
“So that’s the good news.”