No. 3 Bruins Battle No. 1 North Carolina Sunday

No. 3 UCLA (4-0) at No. 1 North Carolina (5-0)
Sunday, Sept. 4, 2022 – 12pm ET / 9am PT
Chapel Hill, N.C. (Dorrance Field)
TV: ACC Network
Live Stats: goheels.com

SECOND TOP 2 TARGET AHEAD

After a 2-1 victory at No. 2 Duke on Sept. 1, the No. 3 Bruins (4-0) will next challenge No. 1 North Carolina (5-0) on Sunday, Sept. 4 at 12pm ET/9am PT. This is UCLA’s first matchup against a No. 1-ranked team since Aug. 29, 2019, when the Bruins beat No. 1 Florida State, 2-1, at Banc of California Stadium.

DEJA VU

This is not the first time a No. 3-ranked Bruin team faced a top-ranked Tar Heel squad in North Carolina. This matchup also occured on Sept. 6, 2013, albeit on a neutral field at Duke. The Tar Heels came out on top, 1-0, on a 79th minute goal by Crystal Dunn. Two days later, UCLA played at Duke and won, 2-1, thanks to goals by Rosie White and Darian Jenkins. That loss to North Carolina was the only one by the Bruins that year. They beat the Tar Heels in a rematch at the NCAA quarterfinals and went on to win the program’s first-ever NCAA title.

UCLA DOWNS DUKE, 2-1

In the first of a pair of games this week against the Top 2 teams in the nation, No. 3 UCLA served notice with a 2-1 win at No. 2 Duke, UCLA’s first win over a Top 2 team since beating No. 1 Florida State on Aug. 29, 2019. Forward Reilyn Turner had a hand in both goals, and goalkeeper Lauren Brzykcy tied her career-high in saves with nine, including seven in the second half alone. Jayden Perry put UCLA in the lead in the 12th minute, converting a penalty kick after Turner was fouled in the box. Duke equalized in the 39th minute, snapping the Bruins’ shutout streak at 308 minutes and continued to pepper the Bruin defense in the second half, forcing goalkeeper Lauren Brzykcy into seven second-half saves. UCLA made the most of its opportunities, with Turner netting the game-winning goal in the 62nd minute.

DEFENSE NEARLY SPOTLESS IN 2022

After four games this season, UCLA is averaging just six shots allowed per game and a total of one goal allowed (0.25 goals against average). Graduate goalkeeper Lauren Brzykcy holds a goals against average of 0.30 and has two solo shutouts and one shared shutout this year. She made a career-high-tying nine saves at Duke on Thursday and, with 175 career saves, is now just two away from tying CiCi Peterson…