Sept. 13, 2007
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SANTA CLARA, Calif. - The Santa Clara women's soccer team returns to action this weekend against No. 12 Rutgers and No. 20 Missouri at the 2007 Stanford Invitational. The No. 1 Broncos will square off against the Scarlet Knights on Friday, Sept. 14 at 5 p.m., and will then take on the Tigers on Sunday, Sept. 16 at 11 a.m. Both games will be held at Maloney Field on the campus of Stanford University.
Last Week For Bronco Women's Soccer
Last Friday, SCU put on an impressive show against long-time rival Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish, then ranked No. 2 in the nation, faced their toughest loss since 1989, as the Broncos posted a 7-1 victory. The win marked Santa Clara's biggest margin of victory over Notre Dame. The Broncos blanked the Irish, 4-0, in 2002 at Alumni Field in Notre Dame, Ind. The 7-1 rout was also the most goals the Irish allowed of its opponents since 1989 (which was six).
Kiki Bosio, Brittany Klein and Meagan Snell each chipped in with two goals, while Courtney Lewis added the seventh goal. After a day of rest, the Broncos held off the Cavaliers of Virginia to a 0-0 tie. Santa Clara's defense, including goalkeeper Meagan McCray, Lindsey Johnson, Katherine Reynolds, Chioma Igwe and Anessa Patton played a crucial role in both games last weekend. McCray totaled 11 saves during the weekend, while the defensive line limited their opponents to just 20 shots and only one goal.
Bronco Blogging
All year long, Bronco fans can receive an inside look at the women's soccer team by checking in with Jordan Angeli's blog on SantaClaraBroncos.com.
Angeli will be checking each week to let fans know what is going on with the team and its players both on and off the field.
To read Angeli's blog along with other Bronco sports blogs, click on the link on the right side of the SantaClaraBroncos.com homepage.
Klein, Bosio and Snell Named to All-Tournament Team
For their efforts in guiding the Broncos to a 2-0-1 overall record and a second place finish at the 2007 Santa Clara adidas Classic, seniors Klein and Snell along with sophomore Bosio were named to the weekend's all-tournament team.
All three players netted two goals for Santa Clara against then-No. 2 Notre Dame in their first game of the weekend. Snell first goal of the night put the Broncos up by one, 2-1, and then she struck again in the beginning of the second half, to give SCU a 3-1 advantage.
Klein Receives WCC Player of the Week Honors
Arcadia, Calif., native Klein received her first-ever Player of the Week honors from the West Coast Conference on Monday. The senior captain was instrumental in the Broncos win over the Fighting Irish as she netted two goals and provided an assist on Snell's second goal of the night, which put the Broncos up, 4-1, in the second half. Her back-to-back goals helped the Broncos to a 6-1 score with fifteen minutes left and tied what was the most number of goals Notre Dame had allowed of its opponents since 1989.
SCU Claims No. 1 Spot in Soccer America Top 25; Moves To No. 2 in NSCAA Poll
After an excellent weekend at Buck Shaw Stadium, the Broncos grabbed hold of the No. 1 ranking in Soccer America's weekly Top 25 poll. Santa Clara also saw a move from a No. 8 ranking in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Top 25 poll to the No. 3 spot, just behind first place Stanford and second place North Carolina. However, perhaps the biggest move for the Broncos is in this week's Soccer Buzz rankings, as SCU jumped 12 spots from No. 15 to No. 4.
Broncos Receive More Weekly Honors
To add to their all-tournament team accolades, Klein and Bosio received national team of the week honors from both Soccer Buzz and TopDrawerSoccer.com. The honors marked first and second of the season, while Klein picked up her second and third awards after being named WCC Player of the Week.
Both Bronco standouts helped SCU to a 2-0-1 overall record and a second place finish in the 2007 Santa Clara adidas Classic. The Broncos upset then-No. 2 Notre Dame, 7-1, Friday night at Buck Shaw Stadium. Klein netted two goals against Notre Dame and provided an assist on Snell's second goal of the night.
Bosio began and ended Friday night's game for Santa Clara, scoring the first unassisted goal of the night at 16 minutes. She then kept the momentum going for the Broncos as she provided an assist on Lewis' goal just five minutes later. The Mission Viejo, Calif., native put the final nail in the coffin Friday night with 11 minutes left in the second half, as she netted her second goal of the season off a pass from freshman Patton to bring the Broncos to a 7-1 victory.
D-Fence!
The Broncos defense was crucial in the success of the team against both Notre Dame and Virginia last weekend.
After the game against Notre Dame, head coach Jerry Smith said this about his defensive line: "Our backline was amazing tonight. The backline we have this year, is not what we expected it would be. Katherine, Anessa, Chioma and Lindsey are all playing new positions and they have really worked as a unified defensive unit to play against a very talented Notre Dame front line. To limit the star-studded front line that includes the 2006 National Player of the Year to just one goal is amazing."
Sunday's game against Virginia was a real test for the Broncos' defense after playing such an intense match two nights before, but SCU was up to the challenge. Made up of a similar combination of defenders and starting goalkeeper McCray, Santa Clara's defense put up a strong fight against then-No. 8 Virginia. McCray tallied 11 saves and a .917 saves percentage over the weekend.
After Sunday's 0-0 tie, Smith added the following about the Broncos' defense: "I have to give a lot of credit to our back four players and to Curtis McAlister who works a lot with them. They played against two very tough teams and came together really well to put a stop to both of them. I also have to give credit to our goalkeeper, McCray. Although she didn't make a ton of saves today, those that she did make were smart. She definitely made her job look easy this afternoon."
Broncos On The National Stage
Santa Clara continues its presence on the national stage. The Broncos scoring offense is ranked 12th in the nation with Klein checking in at No. 18 in the nation in goals per game and No. 26 overall in points per game. Goalkeeper McCray nabs the No. 77 spot in save percentage, while Lexi Orand is 77th in the nation in assists per game.
Santa Clara in WCC
The season is still young for the Broncos and while they are competing in non-conference action, the Broncos are setting up a strong foothold in the West Coast Conference standings. Santa Clara and Portland switched spots this week as SCU took over first place in the conference. The Broncos have averaged 8.33 points per game, this season while the second place Pilots compiled 5.75 points per game. In just two weekends on the field, SCU has netted 10 goals (3.33 per game) to take first in the conference.
Individually, Tina Estrada holds on to the No. 5 spot in shots per game and is joined by Bosio, who checks in at No. 9 in the same category. Klein ranks first in the WCC in points per game, averaging 2.33, while Bosio and Snell claim the No. 6 and No. 7 spots respectively in the same category.
The Broncos also have six players ranked in the goals per game category. Klein is tied for first with Rachel Rapinoe of Portland and Liz Van Buskirk of San Francisco, while Snell and Bosio tie for sixth place. Estrada, Lewis and Jessie Baddley also make an appearance tied for the No. 10 spot in the same category. In assists per game, Orand checks in at No. 3, while Patton, Bosio and Klein are tied for No. 6. Meanwhile, in saves per game junior McCray owns the No. 2 spot, averaging 5.67 saves per game.
Scouting Rutgers
Santa Clara takes on its second BIG EAST opponent of the season Friday night against Rutgers. The Scarlet Knights enter the weekend with a 4-0-0 overall record that includes wins over Monmouth Bucknell, Lehigh and Long Island University.
Rutgers is lead by sophomore Karla Schacher, who is first on the team offensively with three goals and six points. Goalkeeper Erin Guthrie has only given up one goal in four games and received BIG EAST weekly honor roll accolades for her roll in the Scarlet Knights wins against Bucknell and Monmouth last weekend.
Friday night's game is just the second meeting of the two teams. The Broncos and Scarlet Knights last met on Sept. 10, 2004 at Yurcak Field in Piscataway, N.J., with Rutgers picking up a 1-0 win.
Scouting Missouri
Sunday's will be the first time Santa Clara and Missouri meet on the field. The Tigers begin the weekend with a 4-0-0 overall record. They have posted wins against then-No. 20 Illinois, Western Michigan, Iowa and Eastern Illinois. The Mizzou are led by an offense that is ranked 13th in the nation. Freshman Alysha Bonnick leads the Tigers in points, tallying nine, while sophomore Kristin Andrighetto has netted a team best four goals thus far.
Defensively, the Tigers have only allowed three goals this season. Missouri is led by juniors Kat Tarr, Lindsay McCoy and sophomore Crystal Wagner. Their defense did not give up a shot or corner kick to Eastern Illinois, and then shut out Iowa on Sept. 7.
On Deck
The Broncos remain on the road next weekend as they travel to Arizona for non-conference action. Santa Clara will face Arizona State on Friday, Sept. 21 and will then take on Arizona on Sunday, Sept. 23. Kick off is slated for 7 p.m. and 1 p.m. respectively.