{"id":56078,"date":"2025-08-09T03:54:08","date_gmt":"2025-08-09T03:54:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/56078\/"},"modified":"2025-08-09T03:54:08","modified_gmt":"2025-08-09T03:54:08","slug":"ucla-womens-soccer-gears-up-for-exhibition-match-as-new-faces-flood-the-field","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/56078\/","title":{"rendered":"UCLA women\u2019s soccer gears up for exhibition match as new faces flood the field"},"content":{"rendered":"

Time is the enemy of every college athlete.<\/p>\n

The clock starts ticking once a player steps onto the field for the first time \u2013 four years until they\u2019re gone.<\/p>\n

Add injuries and transfers to the mix, and coaches are left to ride a volatile carousel of shoes to fill.<\/p>\n

UCLA women\u2019s soccer will kick off its season on Saturday with an exhibition game against Loyola Marymount at Wallis Annenberg Stadium. With the departure of twelve upperclassmen to the pros and transfer portal, the Bruins\u2019 squad is relatively unseasoned \u2013 meaning starting spots are up for grabs. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s all about giving players minutes and just seeing what they can do,\u201d said coach Margueritte Aozasa. \u201cSo far, we\u2019re seeing a lot of really good moments in training.\u201d <\/p>\n

The goalkeeper position in particular is one to watch early on. Following the graduation of Ryan Campbell, freshman Daphne Nakfoor and sophomores Layla Armas and Mariangela Medina are vying for the starting role. <\/p>\n

Aside from defining the starting lineup, the squad hopes to hit the ground running on Saturday to set the tone for a successful season from the get-go.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s kind of like a statement game for us,\u201d said sophomore forward Jordan Geis. \u201cWe want to have an undefeated season.\u201d <\/p>\n

While the preseason has been far from seamless \u2013 with players rotating in and out due to injuries and newcomers arriving on a staggered schedule \u2013 the exhibition match offers a low-stakes opportunity to get organized. Regardless of the results this weekend, the match won\u2019t count toward the Bruins\u2019 official record. <\/p>\n

\"(DailyCoach Margueritte Aozasa smiles, facing away from the stands. (Daily Bruin file photo)<\/p>\n

And despite the uncertainty, the team has quickly bonded \u2013 with many newcomers building chemistry with their peers.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a lot of new faces, but everyone has come together and is already meshing \u2013 surprisingly, very quickly \u2013 and energy has been super high,\u201d Geis said. <\/p>\n

This season\u2019s roster is composed mostly of underclassmen, which is a stark change from the veteran-heavy group that led the squad last season. <\/p>\n

The departure of big names, such as All-Big Ten selections Lilly Reale and Sofia Cook, allows more playing time for new players. This also paves the way for a more collaborative leadership style, with players of all ages working together to guide the team. <\/p>\n

\u201cI know there\u2019s a lot of big adjustments, but I feel like the energy, and having a new team and everyone on the same playing field, could be really beneficial for us,\u201d said redshirt senior forward Lexi Wright. <\/p>\n

The contest also offers the chance for several recovering players to get back into the groove of the game post-injury. Wright \u2013 a 2023 All-Pac-12 third team member \u2013 will be stepping onto the turf for the first time in over a year after facing a season-ending injury during last year\u2019s preseason. <\/p>\n

\u201cI am so excited and just grateful to be out there and be back,\u201d Wright said. \u201cIt\u2019s been such a long time coming.\u201d <\/p>\n

The Bruins will face the Lions on Saturday at 6 p.m. to kick off their 2025 season. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Time is the enemy of every college athlete. The clock starts ticking once a player steps onto the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":56079,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[440],"tags":[49,48,561,82],"class_list":["post-56078","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-soccer","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-soccer","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56078","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56078"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56078\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/56079"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56078"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56078"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56078"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}