Wildcats lose proven freshman for this weekend in Los Angeles

Arizona Daily Wildcat Freshman midfielder Brooke McManus (18) heads the ball in a game against Creighton earlier this season. McManus suffered a cracked rib over the weekend when she was sandwiched between two Oregon State players during a corner kick.

Freshman midfielder Brooke McManus left the game in the first half with a broken rib, after scoring the first goal of the game. Midway through the first half, OSU lofted a corner kick toward the UA goal and McManus got sandwiched between two Beavers.

"It is hard to tell one hundred percent if a rib is broken because they don't show up well on the x-ray," said team trainer Matt Radelet. "But she has seen two different doctors and they have both diagnosed her with a cracked rib."

Although the injury is disappointing, the doctors' prognosis is optimistic.

"There are two kinds of breaks - a displaced rib where the doctors need to put it back in place. This is the type of break when internal problems result," Radelet said. "This is not the type of break Brooke has. Her rib is cracked and it just takes time for the bone to heal.

"The most important thing is to keep her as comfortable as possible."

"At first it was a constant pain, it hurt to walk, breath and sleep," said McManus, who has seen significant playing time as a freshman. "I'm on painkillers and it's wrapped in a bandage. The pain has gotten better but it still hurts to move and breath deep."

Radelet expects McManus, who is from Escondido, Calif., to be in discomfort all week and noted that he expects it to be at least a week until she can run and estimates the bone to heal in six to eight weeks.

"Brooke will not be doing much of anything this week," Radelet said. "Basically her level of pain will determine what she is able to do."

Meanwhile the Arizona coaches are preparing to be without McManus, who leads the team with two game-winning goals has the most points for a defender.

"She was really playing well this weekend and beginning to feel more comfortable in her role," head coach Lisa Fraser said. "I think (Megen) Page and Kristina (Quiroz) will help in her absence. It won't change our game drastically."

This week the Wildcats are preparing for a tough road trip to Los Angeles.

Arizona will face UCLA, who are 13-2-0 overall and 5-0 in the Pac-10, on Halloween night. The Bruins, the only undefeated team in the Pac-10, are on a six-game winning streak.

Sunday the Wildcats will face No. 18 Southern Cal, who are 13-2-1 overall and 4-1 in the Pac-10 - the Trojans' only loss in the conference came last weekend against UCLA.

Arizona has never beaten UCLA (0-3), while USC leads the series 2-1.

"I've worked on being more patient on the ball and having more solid catches," said freshman goalkeeper Inger Airheart, who is one of the Pac-10 best goalkeepers. "We've worked on every part of the game and have been making little changes. We don't have any big huge problems."

Goalkeeping and defense have been two of the Wildcats' strengths this season. The team is second in the conference with a goals-against average of 0.96 and Airheart has recorded a school-record six shutouts.