Nov. 21, 2003
SMU
SMU Head Coach Schellas Hyndman
"I thought we played with a lot of heart and courage. It was a difficult game being on the road. The game was very physical with all the fouls in the first half, 15-4. I thought the officiating was very good but I would have liked to see some cards in the first half. As a coach ,I look back on the game wishing there weren't as many fouls, that the field was in better shape and see how a minor slippage made a huge impact on the game. I thought the guys played very well for as physical of a game it was.
"SCU is an impressive team. They come out and put everything on the field. That can take a lot out of a team and these guys are not professional players.They can get out of rhythm very easily."
SMU Senior Midfielder Kevin Hudson
"It's nfortunate that we had to lose in penalty kicks because no one likes to do that. We didn't play as well as we could; we gave it all away. It has kind of been the theme throughout the season is that we've been a little unlucky; we trip over our own feet and it just doesn't work out for us. I can't say that I'm upset with how we played because everyone seemed to give it all they had."
Santa Clara
SCU Head Coach Cameron Rast
"SMU is a great team with a great tradition. This is a team we have already faced this year which makes it equally difficult that we had to match up again. There were no secrets in tonight's game, which is probably why it played out so close through regulation. Early on I think both teams were just trying to get their feet wet in a play-off match and I think that explains some of the tentativeness on both sides. They did a little better job coming out and getting a hold of the ball, but as the game wore on, I thought we got more control and starting doing what we wanted to do. Our goal is to be able to create an opportunity to score and to keep the opponent under pressure and I think we did a good job of that throughout the game. It was a tough, well-played match for both teams. It is a little unfortunate that two highly-rated teams in the coaches' polls had to meet so early."
On the fouls: "The refs called a very tight game and SMU took advantage of that. They are a very good attacking team and played the game according to what they thought would be called. That's true gamesmanship. I'm proud of the boys for sticking with it."
SCU Freshman Midfielder Erik Ustruck
On his goal: "Luck had to be on my side on that play."
On rematch with LMU: "Last week's game was a hard fought battle. They're a tough team to play against, but we're looking forward to a rematch."
Junior Goalkeerp Steve Cronin
On his two big saves: "It's a combination of things that I look for. In the end I get a general feeling of where the player is going. So far in my career I've been pretty successful I feel very comfortable in those situations."