NCAA SOCCER : Adair Helps San Diego Eliminate UCLA, 2-1

Chugger Adair, a 6-foot-5 forward for the University of San Diego, slid frantically and awkwardly into a rolling soccer ball, tapped it into the net with the outside of his foot and stunned the UCLA men’s soccer team.

Adair, whose given name is Charles, scored the winning goal with about 20 minutes remaining to help San Diego beat UCLA, 2-1, at UCLA’s North Soccer Field on Sunday in a second-round game of the NCAA Division I men’s soccer tournament.

After the final whistle, San Diego players raised their fists and ran to meet fans in the crowd of 1,523, which spilled out of the stands.

UCLA players fell to the ground in apparent disbelief and disappointment.

It was UCLA’s first loss to San Diego.

“It just comes down to, skill doesn’t mean everything,” said Bruin junior Brad Friedel, who was the U.S. Olympic goalkeeper. “You have to have some heart.”

Fifth-ranked UCLA was top-seeded in the West Region and received a first-round bye. San Diego, ranked 13th, defeated Stanford, 3-0, in a first-round game on Nov. 14.

The Bruins scored the first goal after an indirect kick 35 minutes into the game. Joe-Max Moore received the ball about 20 yards away from the goal and curved it around the right side of San Diego’s wall of players and into the upper right corner of the net.

San Diego tied the score during the second half when Guillermo Jara, the Torero’s highly regarded freshman, headed a cross from Adair into the net.

San Diego (16-5) seemed to gain momentum during the second half while UCLA (13-3-3) grew increasingly disoriented and panicky.

“You can talk about luck, you know,” UCLA Coach Sigi Schmid said. “There’s six inches between unhappiness and happiness.”

San Diego will play Indiana (14-5-4), a 2-0 winner over Washington on Sunday, in the West Region final next weekend.