Buffs' Comeback Falls Short

BOULDER—The No. 20 Colorado Buffaloes had its moments against No. 5 UCLA in Friday night's Pac-12 opener, but couldn't complete the comeback effort falling 3-1 in front of a sell-out crowd of 2,336 that packed Prentup Field.

"We really wanted lights since the day we got here because we know what this community, student body and university is capable of in its support," head coach Danny Sanchez said about Friday's crowd. "I want to thank everyone who a hand in getting the lights in and allowing us to play in front of a sold-out crowd against the defending national champions.

"I think going forward this will be more of the norm instead of the exception as we continue to grow our program. I hope the fans know how much we appreciate them coming out tonight. They really pushed us and I know they got their money's worth."

UCLA (7-1-0, 1-0-0) used two first-half goals from Ally Cook and added the third off an owl goal in the second half to hand the Buffs their second loss of the season. Colorado (8-2-0, 0-1-0) cut the UCLA lead in half with Shyra James putting home her eighth goal of the season midway through the second half.

Sophomore goalkeeper Jordan Nytes, who entered the night ranked 12th in the NCAA with a .886 save%, made seven saves on UCLA's nine shots on goal. She played large in net in the second half, denying five shots on target.

"The own goal was a little unfortunate but to be fair, they put a lot of pressure on us," Sanchez added. "Jordie made a couple of good saves. She kept us in the game for a good stretch there. We just didn't have enough horses at the end to get over the hump, but a solid performance from the Buffs and now we focus on Oregon."

How it happened
UCLA struck early to start the night, finding the net on the first shot of the game in the sixth minute. Lexi Wright split the middle of the field and found a streaking Cook at the top of the penalty area. Cook took the ball to the top of the six-yard line and struck it past a diving Nytes for her first of the night.

Cook doubled the Bruins' right before the half. This time she was contested by Faith Leyba as the two players tried to win the ball from close range. Cook got the redirect and put it through Nytes' legs for her fifth goal of the season.

UCLA took a 7-3 shot advantage into the break and nearly added a third goal on the opening possession of the second half, with Wright putting it off the right post.

Colorado settled in following the scare and put a flurry of pressure on the Bruins. CU had a pair of corner chances separated by a pair of Ava Priest flip throws into the box. The sustained pressure resulted in James getting a flick on net, but was saved off the line by the UCLA defense.

James didn't need to wait much longer to break through, heading home a corner kick from Rachel Rosen and bringing Prentup Field to its feet in the 61st minute.

"The two goals that UCLA scored in the first half were very good goals," Sanchez expressed. "I think the one right before halftime was a bit of a backbreaker and the team could have folded. But what a response we had in the second half, especially at the beginning of the half. To get to 2-1 we had a lot of momentum, but we were also expending a lot of energy and were getting exposed in the back."

The Bruins' offense sparked back up after the Colorado goal and led to an unfortunate bounce. Nytes made her fifth save of the evening and the rebound bounced off Rosen and back into the CU net.

"I think we needed to strike within 10 minutes after we got to within one," Sanchez continued. "As the game got more stretched they [UCLA] were getting a lot of opportunities going the other way. But the team really to the cause tonight and battled. If we put together this type of effort and performance going forward I think we'll be in good shape."

Upcoming
The Buffs will hit the road next week and head to the Beaver state for a pair of matches against the Oregon schools. CU will open at Oregon (Sept. 28) and wrap up the trip against Oregon State (Oct. 1).

Notes
Friday's crowd was the fourth largest in Prentup Field history…James' goal was the 33rd of her career, moving her past Katie Griffin for 3rd on CU's all-time scoring list…She now has 71 career points and is closing in on Griffin (78) for fourth all-time…The James and Rosen tandem connected for the second straight game…Rosen's assist was her third of the season…CU is now 0-8-0 all-time against defending national champions…The Buffs fall to 2-14-0 all-time against the Bruins…CU is now 1-1-0 against ranked opponents this season.

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Team Stats

Shyra James

Rachel Rosen

Hope Leyba

Juliauna Hayward

Players Mentioned

Shyra James

Faith Leyba

Jordan Nytes

Ava Priest

Rachel Rosen

Players Mentioned

Shyra James

Faith Leyba

Jordan Nytes

Ava Priest

Rachel Rosen