Oct. 31, 2000

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SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- The Santa Clara men's soccer team (7-7-0, 1-2-0 WCC) begins a three-game homestand to end the regular season when it plays host to West Coast Conference rival Saint Mary's (5-11-0, 0-3-0 WCC) Thursday. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at Buck Shaw Stadium (capacity 6,800) for the game that is sponsored by Zanotto's Family Markets.

Saint Mary's is 5-11-0 on the season and 0-3-0 in the WCC. The Gaels are 2-3 in their last five matches with wins at Sacramento State and home against Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Of Saint Mary's 16 matches this season, 12 have been decided by just one goal.

The Broncos dropped a tight 1-0 decision at eighth-ranked San Diego last week. Santa Clara outshot the Toreros by a 16-12 margin in the match, including an 8-3 edge in the second half. The key play down the stretch came with 1:57 left in the match when Keith Burden's (Niwot, Colo.) shot attempt was stopped by a sliding San Diego defender 10 yards from the goal to deflect the possible tying score. San Diego improved to 12-1-2 on the season at 3-0-1 in the WCC.

Santa Clara holds a 24-2-2 series lead over the Gaels since the first meeting in 1968. However, the record over the last three meetings is an even 1-1-1. The Broncos hold a six-match winning streak against Saint Mary's at Buck Shaw Stadium and a 3-3 tie in 1986 is the only time the Gaels escaped the Santa Clara campus without a loss. Last season, Saint Mary's caught the Broncos with a two-match losing streak and fought to a 1-1 tie in Moraga. Following that match, SCU went on to post a 6-1-2 record to end the season and advanced to the College Cup finals.

Following the Saint Mary's match, Santa Clara plays host to San Francisco and its retiring head coach Stephen Negoesco on Tuesday, Nov. 7 at 7:30 p.m.