Sept. 8, 2006
LOS ANGELES, Calif. - Although not agents on "Her Majesty's Secret Service," Jordan Angeli and Amanda Poach returned to the Santa Clara lineup "From Russia With Love" in most James Bond-esque fashion, playing crucial roles in the third-ranked women's soccer team's 2-1 double-overtime victory against No. 9 Connecticut.
Angeli assisted on Meagan Snell's equalizer in the 55th minute, and Poach earned an assist as her corner kick in the 104th minute found the head of Chioma Igwe, who redirected it into the back of the net for the game-winner in the opener of the UCLA Women's Cup.
The No. 3 Broncos (4-1-0) will end the weekend Sunday in a nationally-televised contest against another team ranked No. 3 in the nation, the Texas A&M Aggies. The match is set for an 11:30 a.m. kickoff and will be televised on ESPNU.
"They had a major impact in the match on both ends, Jordan and Amanda definitely helped us control most of the match so it was really good to have them out there," said head coach Jerry Smith.
Santa Clara controlled the match early on, keeping UConn goalkeeper Stephanie Labbe busy as she was forced to make a couple saves in the first 18 minutes. But the Huskies caught a break in the 25th minute when Brittany Tegeler made a quick steal on the offensive end and found Brittany Taylor at the top of the box. Taylor's shot, which ended up being UConn's only one of the first half, was true and the Huskies stole the game's first goal for the 1-0 lead.
Playing from behind for only the second time this season, the Broncos bounced back in the second half, striking only nine minutes in as Angeli's shot was blocked in front, but right to the opportunistic Snell, who buried the deflection for her third score of the season, making it a 1-1 tie.
The UConn offense woke up at this point, registering its first shots since Taylor's goal in the first half. Neither team really threatened until the 62nd minute, when in a 50-second span the Broncos had two shots blocked, a corner kick, and an Angeli shot hit the post.
SCU keeper Meagan McCray made her two saves in the latter half of the second period, keeping things square as the Broncos failed to get a shot off after Angeli's attempt off the post.
It took just over 13 minutes of extra time for matters to be settled, as Poach had a shot deflected out-of-bounds for an SCU corner kick. On the ensuing corner, Igwe managed to get her head on the ball and into the net for her first goal as a Bronco and the clincher.
"You like to say that you've come from behind from really good teams. We gave up an early goal against the run of play, and that can be very deflating, especially because Connecticut is a very good defensive team," Smith continued. "But the girls came back, and it's always good to know that you can come from behind against a really good team."
The Broncos outshot the Huskies 13-9 in the contest, putting seven of those shots on frame. They also took six corner kicks to UConn's two, keeping the game in the Connecticut half.
"We were definitely controlling and especially very dangerous tonight," Smith said of the team's performance. "That's very encouraging because that is a necessary step you need to make in order to become a team that can score multiple goals in a game. We're creating chances and the goals will come."