Freshman Melissa Fernandez tries to get by the Bruin defense in Friday's 2-0 loss to No. 3 UCLA. Photo Caption: Charlie Landon / Staff Photographer

The CSUN women’s soccer team (4-6) lost 2-0 Friday to the No. 3-ranked UCLA Bruins at Matador Field. Despite playing without their top scorer, the Bruins had little trouble controlling play and peppering Matador goalkeeper Kellie Drenner with shots.

Early in the game, UCLA had three close calls. The first shot of the game was a bullet from about 30 yards out that struck the crossbar. Luckily for Northridge, the rebound came out to the Matador defense.

But at that moment, it became very clear what the Matadors were up against. The Bruins are a skilled, powerful and deep team with precision passing and a tough defense.

“It was rough,” CSUN freshman defender Stephanie Norton said. “They were hanging back real deep and playing comfortably.”

After the near-miss, it was only a matter of time before the Bruins were going to strike, and in the 18th minute they did. Senior forward Kristina Larsen beat a couple Matador defenders in the open field, creating a breakaway with only Katie Russ standing in between the UCLA player and Drenner.

Larsen made a move left and shot right. The ball deflected off of Russ and into the left corner of the net for Larsen’s seventh goal of the year.

Shortly after the goal, CSUN had one of its best chances of the game. Sophomore forward Heidi Farran made three successive crossovers, causing the UCLA defender guarding her to fall and opening up an alley for a shot that Farran placed just over the goal from 20 yards out.

“I faked the shot and cut left,” Farran said later. “I didn’t mean to hurt the girl.”

The fallen UCLA defender, Kara Lang, had to be carried off after the play, with an apparently-serious leg injury that kept her out the rest of the game. Elise Britt replaced Lang in the game.

But the UCLA defense seemed just as dominant, and at the 43-minute mark, the Bruin offense struck again, with senior forward Lauren Cheney putting a header into the right corner of the net off a cross from Britt. Britt and Whitney Sharpe were credited with assists on the play.

Despite being outshot 19-9, the Matadors did have a few highlights. CSUN got another solid start from goalie Drenner, who gave up just the two goals. Considering that one was off of a deflection and the other was amidst a lot of traffic in front of the goal, it was Drenner’s performance that kept Northridge in the game.

Northridge also got an unexpected contribution from Norton. After replacing Katie Fox mid-way through the first half, the freshman made an immediate impact.

“Stephanie was awesome, she gave us great energy off the bench,” head coach Keith West said, something that he’ll now have to consider giving Norton more playing time. “When you bring that much energy and effort, you have to keep feeding them (minutes).”

Norton wasn’t the only one who brought energy and effort; the whole CSUN team left everything it had out on the field. Despite battling against a superior team, the Matadors held their own, especially in the second half when they had seven shots to UCLA’s six.

The next step is to actually get a win for those efforts, which the Matadors will try to do when they begin Big West Conference play next weekend.

Northridge will host Cal Poly-SLO on Friday and then play host to UC Santa Barbara on Sunday. The Matadors might have a 4-6 record, but conference play is all that really matters, and that’s what they have to look forward to.

“The real season begins right now,” West said.

The CSUN women’s soccer team (4-5-0) plays host to the nation’s third-ranked team, UCLA, this Friday at Matador soccer field. Clearly, this will be a tough test for the Matadors.

CSUN will try to keep momentum on its side after having won a hard-fought battle last weekend against Hawaii, 1-0.  Following a couple of disappointing losses on the road, the win against the Warriors was exactly what the team needed.

“When you go away from home and you don’t have the success you want, it’s definitely refreshing to get that win, leading the team to believe that they are a good team,” head coach Keith West said.

UCLA is 6-1-1 on the season, with its only loss coming at the hands of the No. 1-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels in the first game of the year.  Since that game, the Bruins have outscored their opponents 23-3.

The Bruins are 4-1 all-time against Northridge. The only win for the Matadors in the series came at home on Sept. 10, 1996, by a score of 2-1.

Fortunately for the Matadors, UCLA is going to be without two of its three leading scorers, as well as its head coach. Fifty-five minutes into its last game against Missouri, head coach Jillian Ellis walked onto the field complaining about a hard foul on one of her players, causing her to receive a red card.

Five minutes later, the Bruins’ leading scorer Sydney Leroux received a red card for an altercation in the Missouri box. With red cards comes a one-game suspension.  Lauren Cheney, the third-leading scorer on the Bruins, will also miss the match because she will be away playing with the U.S. national team.

Leroux and Cheney account for 12 of the 25 Bruin goals this season, creating a void on UCLA’s offensive end. The Matadors hope that along with that void, the stellar play of goalkeeper Kellie Drenner will help CSUN slow down the Bruins enough for an upset win.

“She (Drenner) has given the team confidence that she is going to make the plays,” West said.

The Bruins have a propensity for scoring late goals, outscoring their opponents 15-4 in the second half.

“Obviously a team as talented as they are, they will naturally back you up,” West said. “They can go pretty deep on their bench, meaning their players can stay fresh at the end of the game.”

Northridge has been outscored 8-4 from the second half on this year. That is a trend the Matadors will have to change if they want to defeat UCLA.