No. 4 Maryland Battles UCLA to 2-2 Draw Despite Late Push
The short version
- Rodrigo Neri scored his fourth goal of the season in the fifth minute; Dominic Ayella equalized in the 77th minute for No. 4 Maryland.
- UCLA's Jaime Amaro (19th minute) and Victor Ciaurriz (54th) scored for the Bruins, who finished with 10 men after Diego Martinez's 30th-minute red card.
- Maryland outshot UCLA 24-7 but could not find a winner, with Rodrigo Neri missing high in the 88th minute.
- UCLA is unbeaten against Maryland since joining the Big Ten, with three regular-season draws and two straight Big Ten tournament eliminations of the Terps.
- Maryland next plays No. 2 Indiana in Bloomington on Friday to open a three-game stretch against ranked Big Ten opponents.
Maryland outshot UCLA 24-7 and equalized late through Dominic Ayella, but could not find a winner against 10-man UCLA in a Big Ten men's soccer draw.
Maryland men's soccer, ranked No. 4, played to a 2-2 draw with UCLA on Friday night, despite holding a man advantage for most of the second half. The Terrapins finished with 24 shots, seven on goal, but could not break through for a winner in the closing stages.
Maryland struck early, with Rodrigo Neri scoring in the fifth minute off a long lead pass from defender Ljubomir Popovic out of the Terps' own defensive third. The goal was Neri's fourth of the season, tying him with freshman Said El Eyssami for the team lead.
UCLA controlled much of the possession over the first 30 minutes and pulled level in the 19th minute. After Maryland players appealed for a call in midfield, Ander Marticorena won the ball and pushed into the attacking third, setting up Jaime Amaro, who shot past goalkeeper Laurin Mack.
The match turned at the half-hour mark when Bruins midfielder Diego Martinez was shown a red card after video review for impeding Neri on a long ball, knocking him to the ground. Maryland dominated possession for the rest of the half but went into the break without adding a goal.
Playing down a man, UCLA still took the lead in the 54th minute through a set piece. Arnold Cameron delivered a corner and Victor Ciaurriz got on the end of it to put the Bruins in front.
Maryland answered in the 77th minute. Lillian Fichelle played a ball into the box for El Eyssami, whose bouncing header was not held by UCLA goalkeeper Wyatt Nelson. Leon Koehl got a shot away, and Dominic Ayella buried the deflection for his second goal of the season.
The Terps pushed for a winner late, and Neri came closest in the 88th minute with a strike that sailed just over the top right corner. UCLA held on for the final minute to secure the draw. Head coach Sasho Cirovski said the team had to adjust having not trained with a man advantage this year, and added that Maryland should have won, with enough chances to do so.
UCLA has been a difficult opponent for Maryland since joining the Big Ten. The teams have now drawn three times in regular-season meetings, UCLA has knocked Maryland out of the Big Ten tournament in each of the past two seasons, and the Terps have not beaten the Bruins since 2017. Maryland trails the all-time series 4-5-5.
Maryland now faces a three-game stretch against ranked Big Ten opponents, starting with No. 2 Indiana in Bloomington next Friday. Cirovski said the team is conceding too many goals per game and vowed it would be the last such performance. At halftime, Maryland honored its 1996 ACC championship team, the first title of Cirovski's tenure, which he called the most meaningful conference championship of his 34 years.
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