ian lonergan

They say that if you aim for the king, you best not miss. Last Friday, Cal hosted its rival, No. 2 Stanford, and miss they did.

Cal’s next challenge will be a step up, as they travel down the coast this weekend to take on fellow public school UC Santa Barbara in a difficult atmosphere.

The Cal men’s soccer team is a walking, breathing example of that complex lack of face value. Last year saw this team finish with a losing record and place second to last in the Pac-12.

Looking ahead to next year, the Bears will find it difficult to replace the veteran presence provided by Kadono, Lekressner, Ebstein and Sam Junqua. The partnership forged between freshman defenders Ian Lonergan and J.J. Foe Nuphaus this year, however, should prove to pay dividends down the line.

Despite Cal’s winless record in its past five games and current last-place position in the Pac-12 Conference standings, the Bears remain motivated to end this season on a high and give their seniors the send-off they deserve.

The 4-2-2 Bears will face the 4-3 UCLA Bruins on Thursday. Given a little less than a quick 72 hours to recover, the team will seek to capture another crucial W against the 4-2-1 San Diego State University Aztecs on Sunday.

Cal came away from its two-game homestand with a win against the University of Delaware, 2-1, followed by a 1-1 draw against University of Massachusetts Lowell, the No. 15 team in the nation.

Game-winning dominance has been fickle for Cal’s young squad, as it demonstrated last week the depths of the program in a stunning 6-2 victory against Sacramento State but then put on a lackadaisical, scoreless display against UC Riverside.

The Bears return to action Thursday against Sacramento State, followed by a weekend affair with UC Riverside on Sunday.