Sept. 4, 2007
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SANTA CLARA, Calif. - The No. 3 Santa Clara women's soccer team will host its eighth annual Santa Clara adidas Classic this weekend. The Broncos welcome Virginia, Notre Dame and Stanford to Buck Shaw Stadium for the two day tournament held on Friday, Sept. 7 and Sunday, Sept. 9.
First day action begins at 5 p.m., with Stanford and Virginia, and is then followed by Santa Clara and Notre Dame at 7:30 p.m. On Sunday, the Cardinal of Stanford and the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame kick off at 11 a.m., with the SCU Broncos and UVA Cavaliers closing out the weekend at 1:30 p.m.
Follow The Game Online
Every Santa Clara home game and most road games are covered live on the Internet via
www.SantaClaraBroncos.com. All home games will also feature a live video broadcast as well.
Broncos Remain Undefeated In Rivalry Series
Santa Clara opened its 2007 campaign edging local rival San Jose State, 3-2, last Friday. With the win, the Broncos remain undefeated against the Spartans since the overall series began 12 years ago. Freshman Jessie Baddley netted the game winning and her first collegiate goal at 86 minutes. Sending the ball to the back of the net to put the Broncos on the board just under four minutes was redshirt senior Tina Estrada. The goal was the 27th of her career and first since the 2005 season, as she was forced to sit out last season due to a knee injury. Meanwhile, senior captain Brittany Klein put the Broncos up by two, halfway through the second period.
The Broncos out shot the Spartans, 21-12, and junior goalkeeper Meagan McCray made six saves.
SCU moves up to No. 3 in Soccer America Top 25; Holds Steady at No. 8 in NSCAA Poll
In the most recent polls, the Santa Clara women's soccer team jumped to a No. 3 ranking by Soccer America. Portland and Notre Dame hold first and second place, respectively, after the first week of action.
In the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) poll released Tuesday, the Broncos held steady at the No. 8 spot.
This weekend's opponents are also ranked in the same polls. Notre Dame checks in at No. 2 in both Soccer America and NSCAA, while Virginia is ranked No. 8 by NSCAA and No. 11 by Soccer America.
Santa Clara in WCC
With the season just beginning, the Broncos are already ranked in the upper half of the West Coast Conference standings in several categories, while in second place overall.
SCU is third in goals allowed, assists, shots and points, while checking in at No. 2 in goals along with San Francisco.
Individually, Tina Estrada is seventh in the conference in total shots, while grabbing a No. 3 ranking in shots per game. Kiki Bosio also makes an appearance in the shots per game category tied for ninth. Meanwhile, goalkeeper Meagan McCray takes second in saves per game (6.00).
Scouting Notre Dame
The Fighting Irish enter the weekend with a 1-0-1 record. Notre Dame began the season with a 0-0 tie with Michigan on Aug. 31. The Irish out shot the Wolverines 28-6, attempting 18 shots in the second period, while Michigan goalkeeper Madison Gates posted 10 saves to Notre Dame's two saves.
Most recently, Notre Dame blanked Florida, 2-0, on Sept. 2. Scoring the goals for the Fighting Irish were Brittany Bock and Elise Weber. Weber also dished out the assist on Bock's goal, while Kerri Hanks aided Weber's game-winning goal.
Head coach Randy Waldrum returns 16 letterwinners, including seven starters, from his 2006 NCAA runner-up roster. Among the top returnees are second team All-BIG EAST standouts Bock and Amanda Cinalli, 2006 National Player of the Year Hanks, 2006 BIG EAST Defender of the Year Carrie Dew and BIG EAST Rookie of the Year Michele Weissenhofer.
Scouting Virginia
The Cavaliers begin the tournament with a 2-0-0 overall record. UVA posted its first two wins of the season against Delaware and West Virginia. Both victories were shutouts.
Leading the Cavaliers in the net this season is Chantel Jones, who has made a total of five saves in two contests. Meanwhile on the offense, Shannon Foley has netted two goals this season, while five other Cavaliers have scored a goal each. Nikki Krzysik is UVA's assists leader, dishing out two thus far. For her efforts on both sides of the field last week, junior defender Krzysik received ACC Player of the Week accolades.
On Deck
The Broncos return to action next weekend for their first weekend on the road at the 2007 Stanford Tournament. Santa Clara will face BIG EAST opponent Rutgers on Friday, Sept. 14 at 5 p.m., and then play Missouri on Sunday, Sept. 16 at 11 a.m.