Bronco Women's Soccer Battles Portland On ESPNU

SANTA CLARA, Calif. - The eighth-ranked Santa Clara women's soccer team returns to action this week against West Coast Conference rivals Gonzaga and Portland. The Broncos will face the Bulldogs on Thursday, Oct. 25 at 1 p.m., at Martin Field in Spokane, Wash. Santa Clara then travels to Portland to battle the Pilots on national television. Kick off is scheduled for 2 p.m. PT on ESPNU.

Last Week For Bronco Women's Soccer
Santa Clara ended last week with a 2-0-1 record. The Broncos posted a 0-0 double overtime draw with UC Santa Barbara on Wednesday and the registered back-to-back wins against WCC rivals Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount on Friday and Sunday. In Friday's game, the Waves held a 1-0 edge going into the second half but sophomore Kiki Bosio tied the game with an impressive individual effort in the 74th minute. A little of a minute later senior Brittany Klein scored the game-winning goal on a header over the goalkeeper's head. Sunday's contest against LMU was eerily similar, as the Lions scored first and held off the Broncos until the second half. This time, redshirt senior Tina Estrada equalized the game for Santa Clara and captain Klein finished things off with a long-range chip over the goalkeeper's head.

Bosio and Klein are tied for first on the team with 15 points each. Bosio has scored five goals and dished out a team-high five assists, while Klein has netted a team-best seven goals and one assist. Bosio also leads the Broncos in shots with 43, seven of which she attempted against the Gauchos Wednesday night. In goal, junior Megan McCray has recorded 74 saves and owns a .822 saves percentage.

Broncos on National Television
Sunday's contest against the sixth-ranked Pilots marks the first time this season the Broncos will play on national television. The WCC contest will be aired on ESPNU at 2 p.m. PT from Merlo Field in Portland, Ore.

Klein Receives Three Weekly Honors
Captain Klein was named the West Coast Conference's Player of the Week on Monday. The senior midfielder helped the Broncos to a 2-0-1 week and scored the game-winning goals against conference rivals Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount. Klein was also named to Soccer America and Top Drawer Soccer's Teams of the Week for her efforts.

Klein played an instrumental role in all three of the Broncos contests this week. Against UCSB, the captain provided solid effort and strong leadership in the midfield, helping the Broncos control the pace of the game. Against Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount, Klein scored the final goal of the game in the 75th minute of both contests. Against the Waves, a little over a minute after Bosio's equalizing goal, sophomore Katherine Reynolds found Klein in the middle of the box, and with terrific timing, headed the ball in. Against the Lions, Klein executed a long-range chip over goalkeeper Joslyn Slovek's head.

This is Klein's second Player of the Week honor this season. Early in September, the Arcadia, Calif., native received the accolade after helping Santa Clara to a 7-1 rout of then-No. 2 Notre Dame in the 2007 Santa Clara adidas Classic. Klein has now scored seven goals this season, three of which have been game-winning goals. She leads the Broncos in goals and is tied for first on the team in points with 15. She has also compiled 15 career goals and 37 career points.

Estrada Sits One Away From Record Books
With her game-equalizing goal on Sunday against Loyola Marymount, redshirt senior Estrada is now only one goal away from joining the all-time career list in goals. The Fremont, Calif., native has scored 31 goals in her four years on the Mission Campus and needs just one more to tie Kathleen Celio (1997-00) and Brandi Chastain (1989-90) for the No. 10 spot.

Goalkeeper McCray continues to have an impressive season. After collected 12 saves this weekend, the junior improved her career total to 147 saves and now ranks sixth on the all-time list. With the Broncos' 0-0 shutout of the Gauchos on Wednesday, McCray picked her fifth shutout of the season and, with 14 career shutouts, is now tied for the No. 8 spot on the all-time list. McCray's career goals-against average of .770 keeps her in fifth place on the all-time list. In single season records her 74 saves givers her the No. 5 spot. McCray also owns the No. 7 spot on that list with last year's saves total of 59.

Santa Clara in WCC
The Broncos being the third week of WCC play tied for third overall with San Francisco. Both teams own a 2-1-0 league record. Santa Clara is also ranked second in saves and tied for goals. In points and shots, the Broncos rank third. Individually, Bosio leads the conference in shots, while being tied seventh with Klein for points. In goals, Klein is in third place and Bosio and Estrada are tied for fifth. In saves, McCray holds onto the No. 2 spot and continues to be ranked third in shutouts.

In conference games only, Santa Clara is second in shots and fourth in points and goals. Individually, Estrada is in first in shots, while Bosio is tied for sixth. In points, Bosio and Klein are tied for fifth, while Klein is tied for third in goals. In assists, Reynolds is tied for fourth.

Broncos on the National Stage
With the regular season just about two-third of the way complete, the Broncos continue to a strong presence in the national rankings. In scoring offense, Santa Clara moved up to No. 86 this week, while reappeared in the goal-against average category at No. 85. In won-loss-tied percentage, the Broncos are No. 41 overall and in save percentage, SCU climbed 10 spots to No. 58 in the nation.

Individually, McCray is the lone Bronco in this week's standings. She is ranked 73rd overall in save percentage and 90th in goals-against average.

Follow the Broncos 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.

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.

Scouting Gonzaga
The Bulldogs begin the week with a 1-2-0 WCC record and are 9-5-1 in overall play this season. The Bulldogs came back from a loss at San Francisco on Friday to defeat St. Mary's, 2-0, on the road on Sunday. Scoring the goals for Gonzaga were Jamie Blanche and Lauren Zuckerman.

For Gonzaga, Ashley Riley leads the team with 11 points on four goals and three assists. The Zags goals scored leaders are Zuckerman, Blanche and Riley. Each has netted four goals this season. In the WCC, goalkeeper Jessie Thalman is third in the conference for saves and the Zags are tied for second in shutouts.

The Broncos lead the all-time series, 13-0-1. The two teams last met on Oct. 22, 2006 at Buck Shaw Stadium, where SCU registered a 6-2 victory. Scoring for the Broncos were Bosio and Lexi Orand with a goal each, and Angeli and Klein with two goals apiece.

Scouting Portland
The Pilots enter the week in first place in the WCC with a league record of 3-0-0 and an overall record of 11-3-0. Portland is ranked sixth in the majority of the weekly polls. The Pilots lead the WCC in shots, points, goals and assists.

Portland is on a four game win streak that includes recent victories over St. Mary's and San Francisco. In the 6-0 shutout against USF, the Pilots were lead by sophomore forward Kendra Chandhoke, who had four goals in the game.

In the all-time series, Santa Clara leads with a 14-10-2 record. The Broncos and Pilots last met on Oct. 19, 2006 at Buck Shaw Stadium, when SCU edged Portland, 3-2. Scoring the goals for Santa Clara were Marian Dalmy, Meagan Snell and Bosio.

On Deck
The Broncos return to action for their final road game of the regular season on Nov. 4. Santa Clara faces San Francisco that Sunday at 1 p.m.