March 10, 2003

SANTA CLARA, Calif. - The Santa Clara University women's soccer team has announced five scrimmages as part of the spring season. Head coach Jerry Smith and his returning players have already begun conditioning in preparation for the off-season matches.

"We have been really looking forward to this spring season for a number of reasons," Smith said.

The top of his list included the number of players that will participate this spring. Over the last two years, large graduating classes, injuries, and National Team commitments kept a large portion of his squad away from off-season training. Smaller numbers in training sessions allow for individual improvement, but Smith said with the large number of student-athletes on the field this spring, his team will also have the opportunity to work on small group improvement and team improvement.

"The tone of our workouts is very exciting," Smith continued. "We only graduated two starters last year, so our spring practices will feature the core of what we will put out on the field in the fall. It will be easy to integrate our incoming freshman class when they arrive in August."

The Broncos will travel to Nebraska to play the Huskers on Sunday, April 12. Santa Clara defeated Nebraska in the third round of last year's NCAA Tournament the last time these two squads met.

The Broncos will also play Bay Area rivals California and Stanford, as well as participate in Cal's Seven-a-Side Tournament. Although a date is not set, the Broncos will also scrimmage against the WUSA's San Jose CyberRays, featuring former Bronco players Brandi Chastain, Mandy Clemens and Lisa Nanez.

"Stanford and Cal soundly defeated us last year in the regular season, and we only beat Nebraska in the final minutes of the game, so these matches are ones in which our players are very motivated for," Smith added. "We will be tested in every spring match and will have a chance to work on some of our weaknesses."

The 2003 team captains have already been selected and Smith said the spring season will also provide these new leaders a chance to establish themselves among their teammates. Senior forward Kristi Candau returns as a team captain and will be joined by senior defender Chardonnay Poole and junior forward Leslie Osborne.

Women's Soccer Spring Schedule