Last Updated: May 17, 2004
SANTA CLARA, Calif - The Santa Clara University men's soccer team culminates its spring season next week with an exhibition contest Wednesday night, May 19 at 7 p.m. against the 2003 Major League Soccer Champion San Jose Earthquakes at the Santa Clara Youth Soccer Park.
For directions to the city of Santa Clara's new soccer facility, click here.
The Broncos are allowed to play matches on five dates during the non-traditional spring season and have faced seven different opponents since April 3, leading up to Wednesday's match. Santa Clara played at local rival Stanford Friday night in its penultimate spring match.
Wednesday's match against the Earthquakes will serve as a "friendraiser" for Santa Clara men's soccer, the Earthquakes and youth soccer in the South Bay. It is being conducted in conjunction with the city of Santa Clara's Parks and Recreation Department.
"Our players look forward to this match every year," said Bronco men's soccer coach Cameron Rast, last year's West Coast Conference Coach of the Year. "This is a great opportunity for our fans to see us play against the MLS champions and is the perfect chance for kids who play soccer to get up-close and personal with the players and the game. We certainly appreciate the willingness of the Earthquakes and the city of Santa Clara to help make this match happen."
Last week the Earthquakes won a pair of games, beginning with a 4-1 victory over legendary Portuguese First Division team Sporting Club of Portugal Wednesday at Spartan Stadium and will play at Dallas this weekend in a key Western Conference matchup. Former Bronco Ryan Cochrane made his professional debut against Sporting and played a solid 90 minutes. His point-blank defensive stop of Portuguese World Cup standout Joao Pinto was one of the highlights of the first half of the match.
On Saturday the Quakes picked up three valuable points in the MLS table with a 2-1 victory over the Dallas Burn at the Cotton Bowl. Landon Donovan put home the rebound of a Brian Mullan shot in the 14th minute to give the Quakes the advantage, and Brian Ching doubled the lead in first-half stoppage time.
The Earthquakes feature three former Broncos. In addition to Cochrane, 2002 WCC leading scorer Jamil Walker and U.S. Under-23 National Team goalkeeper Steve Cronin will be wearing the familiar black and blue of the Quakes. Cochrane and Cronin were first round draft picks during the winter and both entered the MLS draft following their successful junior seasons.
Opened in April 2004 and located at 5049 Centennial Blvd near the Santa Clara Marriott, the 11.5 acre park contains three full size, lighted soccer fields. One artificial field provides year round practice and game use with two grass fields for game use only. A building with restrooms, meeting rooms, and showers is currently under design.
Season tickets for Bronco soccer are on sale through the Santa Clara Athletic Ticket Office. Call 408/554-4660 for information on season tickets and family plans.
Later this summer, on Saturday, August 28, the Earthquakes will be hosting Santa Clara University night at Spartan Stadium. Colorado will be the Quakes opponent and with Joe Cannon and Jeff Stewart on the Rapids' roster, there could be as many as five former Broncos on the field that night. For special SCU ticket deals for that game, contact Karlton Gholston at the Earthquakes at 408/288-2648.