Over the past two weeks, the U soccer team (6-2-1) has been the beneficiary of some good ol' home cookin'.
The Utes swept their recent three-game home stand, which was due in part to play more cohesive than your average Jell-O salad, the inspirational rants of Super Fan Jackson and the rest of the hometown crowd.
Like all good things, however, the home stand will come to an end this weekend as the Utes travel to Southern California for their toughest road trip of the season.
Despite being more than 1,000 miles away from Salt Lake City, the Utes will still have the benefit of some home cookin'.
As the Utes prepare to face No. 7 UCLA (6-2-0) and San Diego (4-6-1), many Ute players and coaches will also prepare to face their friends and family.
"My family's from down there, [assistant coach Laurel Roderick-Simpson's] family is from down there, Tasia [Duarte], Chelsea [Card], Kiley [Jones], and Kim Lloyd are all from that area as well. So we're all really excited to go down there and show off what we've put together in front of family and friends," U head coach Rich Manning said.
Duarte, a sophomore defender, will also have the opportunity to live out a childhood fantasy, as she faces an opponent with which she is more than a little familiar.
"UCLA was always a school I looked up to when I was younger, so now that I get to play them, I definitely want to beat them," Duarte said.
Duarte's chief priority seems to reflect the mindset of all the Utes, who are taking this weekend very seriously.
"I think this is going to be a really telling weekend," sophomore forward Hailey Marsh said. "If we can beat [UCLA], it will be a huge step for our program. It's a way to prove to everybody that Utah is good."
The lynch pin of the Utes' defense, Melissa Wayman, also sees this weekend as a perfect opportunity to see where her team stands before it begins conference play next Thursday.
"I think it will be a good challenge of our team's character," Wayman said. "We will see how we handle big situations and a lot of pressure."
Although the Utes will be facing substantial pressure in both games this weekend, UCLA has drawn most of the focus from the players, a fact that is understandable given the Bruins' national reputation.
"It's a big school with a big name, and the program has been good for a while," Wayman said. "That's exactly what we're trying to establish, so a win would be awesome."
UCLA's reputation is second only to North Carolina's and that is something the Bruins are working to change. Their current roster features three players who will represent the United States in the Under-19 FIFA World Championships being played in Thailand this November. Star forward Iris Mora is also well-traveled at the highest level of national competition, having just returned from Athens, where she was a member of Mexico's national squad.
This season, the Bruins have outscored their opponents 17-7 overall, and 11-1 on their home field, Drake Stadium.
Their leading scorers are sophomore forward Bristyn Davis and freshman forward Danesha Adams, who have five and six goals, respectively. The Bruin defense is headed by freshman goalkeeper Valerie Henderson, who has allowed seven goals and has made 24 saves in eight games.
The Utes' other opponent is slightly less formidable, but is still a top quality program. San Diego is a member of the WCC, a conference in which Manning coached, and for whom he has a tremendous amount of respect.
"I love playing the WCC teams because they're always good, well-coached, experienced teams," Manning said. "[San Diego has] been in the playoffs for the last five years, and they play in the stadium where the San Diego Spirit played for the WUSA, so it's a great atmosphere with lots of energy."
The Toreros haven't made the NCAA tournament for five years running on the strength of luck alone. They also have several top-quality players on their side. Freshman forward Amy Epsten has scored six goals in 11 games this season, and senior midfielder Marie-Claude Henry has two goals and three assists over that same span.
Defensively the Toreros are susceptible, but were recently bailed out of a three-game losing streak by their freshman goalkeeper Karen Cook, who made 13 saves en route to a 0-0 tie against Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.
Sunday's game against San Diego has let down written all over it, because of the magnitude of Friday's game, but Manning is not worried about that.
"This is one of those weekends where I have absolutely no concern about motivating the players. I know they're going to be motivated," Manning said. "This is like a playoff weekend. One of our goals is to make the playoffs every year, so let's go out and prove it."
mouellette@chronicle.utah.edu
