July 3, 2007
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Santa Clara University announced today the 2007 schedules for men's and women's soccer. The perennial national powers open their season with a doubleheader at Buck Shaw Stadium on Friday, Aug. 31 with the men facing Alabama A&M and the women playing San Jose State. The men play 10 home games in 2007, while the women host eight matches at Buck Shaw. The teams will play a total of three doubleheaders together. Both the men and women will be looking to repeat as West Coast Conference Champions in order to earn automatic berths in the 2007 NCAA Tournament.
"We are looking forward to a very demanding 2007 schedule," said women's head coach Jerry Smith. "This schedule will absolutely prepare us for the NCAA Tournament. With only eight home games this year, we will be looking to give our fans a great show in each and every match. We hope our fans are eager to come watch us play!"
Along with the opening night doubleheader, the men and the women play on the same night on Oct. 19 and Oct. 21. On Oct. 19, the women get the night started with a WCC match against Pepperdine at 6 p.m., followed by the men at 8 p.m. against Portland. Two days later, the women face Loyola Marymount at 12 noon and the men play Gonzaga at 2 p.m.
"Once again, we are playing a difficult non-conference schedule, including two games on the East Coast and a big match against UCLA," said men's head coach Cameron Rast. "With a lot of key players returning we feel we are ready for that challenge as well as the WCC's double round robin. We know that every conference game will be a test so we have to be prepared. We are all looking forward to getting the season started."
Along with the opener against Alabama A&M on Aug. 31, the men host three more non-conference matches next season, including a headliner against UCLA on Saturday, Sept. 22. The Bruins reached the NCAA Final a year ago, while the Broncos advanced to the quarterfinals. Other highlights at home include a Sept. 14 match against Stanford and the WCC home opener against San Francisco. SCU also travels to the East Coast to play against Brown and Boston University in Rhode Island on Sept. 7 and 9, respectively.
Out of eight home dates, the women will be a part of five doubleheaders. Besides the doubleheaders with the men's team, Smith's squad will again host the Santa Clara adidas Classic on Sept. 7 and 9. On Sept. 7, Stanford plays Virginia at 5 p.m., followed by Santa Clara and 2006 national finalist Notre Dame at 7:30 p.m. SCU then faces Virginia on Sept. 9 at 1:30 p.m., preceded by Notre Dame vs. Stanford at 11 a.m.
The difficult schedule for the SCU women also includes road trips to Arizona and Arizona State and trips to Stanford and UCLA. The Broncos once again will participate in the Stanford Invitational, facing Rutgers and Missouri at Stanford on Sept. 14 and 16.
For the men's schedule, click here.
For the women's schedule, click here.