L.A. UNIVERSITY BEAT / WENDY WITHERSPOON : UCLA Soccer Has Climb Ahead

There was a time when UCLA was a men’s soccer power. According to the polls, that time has passed.

UCLA, which has advanced to at least the quarterfinals of the NCAA tournament in each of the last four years and won the national title in 1990, is ranked 16th by Soccer America.

The Bruins lost six senior starters from last season, among them All-Americans Joe-Max Moore and Brad Friedel, both of whom are playing with the U.S. national team.

But Sigi Schmid, UCLA coach, said that the Bruins should not be underestimated.

Friedel, one of the best goalkeepers in UCLA history, will be replaced by sophomore Chris Snitko, who was a first-team All-American as a senior at Anaheim Canyon High in 1990.

Snitko has not played at UCLA, but his inexperience doesn’t necessarily bode ill. In 1986, after goalie Drew Leonard was injured, the Bruins started Anton Nistl, a true freshman, and he went on to set a UCLA record for shutouts with 41.

And UCLA does have several experienced players: senior defenders Jorge Salcedo and Tayt Ianni and senior midfielders Sean Henderson and John O’Brien.

The lesser-known quantities in the Bruins’ starting lineup are four sophomores, defenders Adam Frye and Frankie Hejduk and forwards Eric Chaisongkram and Eddie Lewis. Even though all four had considerable playing time as freshmen, their youth could be a reason for the Bruins’ relatively low ranking.

“I think it’s because a lot of the players really haven’t made a name for themselves yet,” Schmid said.

Schmid, however, has a reputation for taking little-known athletes and turning them into national-caliber players. A case in point: Cobi Jones, who was a walk-on in 1988 and now plays for the U.S. national team. Six Bruins were members of the 1992 U.S. Olympic team.

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Four new NCAA Division I women’s soccer teams began their seasons this month: Loyola Marymount, Pepperdine, UCLA and USC.

There have been women’s club programs at those schools for years, and the new teams are a mixture of returning club players and new recruits.

For many of the players, Division I status is a dream come true. The coaches, all of whom are in their first seasons as Division I coaches, are equally wide-eyed and ecstatic. Here’s a look at the teams:

PEPPERDINE: The Waves (2-1) figure to lead the pack of new Southland teams mainly because they attracted the area’s first marquee player, Kristi DeVert, who transferred from Santa Clara. DeVert, a junior forward, led the Broncos to the NCAA semifinals last season and was selected a freshman All-American by Soccer America in 1991.

Pepperdine’s coach, George Kuntz, led the Cal Lutheran men’s and women’s programs to national prominence in Division III. He started the women’s soccer program at Cal Lutheran in 1989, and the Regals were ranked No. 1 in the Far West and No. 3 nationally last season.

Junior midfielder Heidi Ramage, Cal Lutheran’s most valuable player the last two seasons, followed Kuntz to Pepperdine.

The Waves defeated UCLA in overtime Friday, 4-2.

USC: For Coach Karen Stanley, the blooming of women’s soccer in the Southland is like a miracle. Consider:

--Stanley played on the boys’ team at Claremont High in 1979 because there was no girls’ team.

--As a high school senior in 1980, she wrote to more than 90 colleges, inquiring about women’s soccer scholarships. Only two schools offered them.

--While playing on a club at Chico State from 1981-1984, Stanley and her teammates often slept on the floor in their road opponents’ homes.

“I just can’t help but think how excited I am,” Stanley said.

Stanley, 31, was an assistant at Notre Dame the last two years, helping that relatively new program to a No. 13 national ranking last season.

She landed five recruits for USC, most noteworthy center midfielder Maggie Merritt of Encinitas San Dieguito High.

One problem for USC (1-3-1) is that the Trojans have no home field. They play their home games at Caltech in Pasadena. USC lost to UCLA on Monday, 6-0.

UCLA: The Bruins (2-1) have a prominent player as coach. Joy Fawcett, 25, is a seven-year veteran of the U.S. national team. She scored 14 goals for the U.S. team that won the World Championship in 1991.

Fawcett was selected the CIF 4-A player of the year in 1986 when she led Huntington Beach Edison to a Southern Section championship. She played for California and set a school record by scoring 23 goals while leading the Bears to a third-place national finish in 1987.

Fawcett’s brother, Eric Biefeld, helped UCLA to its first NCAA men’s title in 1985.

Fawcett was hired in July and continued playing with the national team until practice began in August, which left her little time for recruiting.

LOYOLA MARYMOUNT: Peter Novakovic is an investment specialist by morning, soccer coach by afternoon.

The busy schedule for Novakovic, who arrives at his office at 6 a.m. so that he can get to the soccer field by 2 p.m., has not interfered with the Lions’ success so far.

Loyola is off to a 2-1 start with two victories over USC. The Lions are led by Cindy Carullo, a freshman midfielder from Encinitas San Dieguito.