“You need an attitude improvement. You walk out on that field like you deserve to win, but you need to go back out there and earn it!”
Women’s soccer head coach Brian McManus’ halftime pep talk sent his players into a scoring frenzy early in the second half of the match on Oct. 6, returning home with a 3-1 victory over Cal Poly Pomona.
These riveting halftime talks are something that the Tritons have come to depend on as they consistently prove to be a second-half team. Many of the players speculate as to why their team follows this trend.
“We always come out jittery, a bit flat-footed and playing half-heartedly and then at the half we talk with [the] coach and get refocused and play our game,” sophomore midfielder Laura Borenstein said.
Junior forward Kathy Sepulveda attributed the second-half improvements to nerves and overanalyzing before the game.
“We came into the game knowing that Pomona was going to put up a fight, but we had to win to … stay at the top of our conference, so there was a lot on our shoulders,” Sepulveda said. “But in the second half your nerves seem to go away and you know more what you are dealing with and how you need to overcome it.”
Despite their methods, the Tritons were the first to beat the Broncos on their home turf this season, and took the initiative to put the first goal on the board as well. UCSD came out strong and determined with three dangerously close shots on goal before senior midfielder Kelly Cochran drove a beautiful pass to the center to Sepulveda, who was rushing to get there first, and sent the ball sailing to the back of the net for her fifth goal on the season.
“I just happened to be in the right place at the right time,” said Sepulveda, who has scored quite consistently in recent games.
After the first goal, however, the adrenaline seemed to rub off the Tritons and bounce back onto the Broncos, who evened out the score in the 37th minute. There was a scramble in front of the net and a Cal Poly Pomona player managed to get a foot on the ball and take a shot, which was blocked by sophomore goalkeeper Jessica McGovern, but the Bronco player followed through for a goal on the rebound.
According to Sepulveda, the Tritons flank-style play has matched up well against Pomona’s aggressive long-ball strategy.
“Poly plays pretty physical,” Sepulveda said. “They push before they even get the ball and kick it inside and up toward the goal hoping for a lucky break. They are what we like to call a ‘kick it team,’ while we work to move the ball to the outside and bring it back to center in a cross. We know when to rush in and when to stay out.”
After the halftime refresher, the Tritons put themselves back on their game and executed two quick shots within 52 seconds of the second half, when Cochran flicked in a corner kick by junior midfielder Caitlyn Ryan to land just inside the far post.
Borenstein dealt the Broncos one final blow in the 51st minute, unleashing a booming shot from 25 yards out, catching the Cal Poly Pomona goalie totally unprepared.
“They got their heads down after the second goal and started yelling at each other and breaking down on their dribbling confidence, which is why we got the third so quickly,” Borenstein said. “Someone laid back the ball on a throw in and the defender wasn’t putting much pressure on me, so I just went for it and made the shot.”
The shot was very surprising to many Triton players, who had rushed in for what they thought was going to be a cross. When Borenstein went in too deep, it seemed that the opportunity had passed, but she had her own agenda in mind.
“I was confused at first, but once it went in, we said, ‘Hey! We’ll take it,’” Sepulveda said.
The UCSD defense held a tight man-on-man defense for the remainder of the game to secure the win, finishing with a 14-10 advantage in shots, including a 9-1 margin in the second half alone.
With six wins under their belt, the Tritons went on to tackle the seventh two days later against Cal State San Bernardino and successfully overtook the Coyotes in an almost too breezy 5-0 shutout to improve their overall record to 12-1-2 and 9-1-2 in league action.
While fifth-ranked UCSD pushed their win streak to seven, this magic number is less lucky for the Coyotes, as UCSD was the seventh team to shut them out this season.
Though the Tritons had reason to take the match lightly, they remained driven and determined during the game beacause of their desire to win their remaining games and take hold of the opportunity to host the CCAA playoffs.
Junior midfielder Ali Lai executed the first point for the Tritons in the ninth minute of the game on a corner kick by senior midfielder Heather Sugg. Lai was waiting two yards off the goal line and redirected the ball to pop it into the low right corner of the net.
“After we got two goals on them, their drive and fight for the ball just continued to fall,” Lai said.
The Tritons, however, remained unsympathetic and refused to leave any gaps in scoring during the second half to allow the Coyotes time to recover.
The second goal came in second minute from senior midfielder Kelly Cochran. Six minutes later, Borenstein added a third goal on the game.
The Tritons pushed out another quick point by Cochran, and a solid finishing goal by senior midfielder Meghan Dickey, who ended the scoring and the game in the 83rd minute.
“With each win, we get more excited about our progression and pumped for our potential in [the] playoffs,” Lai said.
Lai added that she has recognized a lot of growth in the chemistry of her team.
“We continue to learn more about each other … who has a nice touch, who can get it across the field the fastest and just getting a better read on what each of us are thinking and focusing on during a game,” she said.
With just four games remaining on the season, the Tritons hope to continue their winning streak as they return to UCSD for their final homestand. They will square off against Cal State Los Angeles on Oct. 13 and Cal State Bakersfield, which they tied 2-2 previously in the season, on Oct. 15. With two wins at home, UCSD would secure a spot as host for the CCAA playoffs.
