July 17, 2008
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Santa Clara head coach Jerry Smith announced today the Broncos 2008 women's soccer schedule. The Broncos take the field in 2008 with another challenging schedule that includes the 2007 National Champion Southern California and 10 other opponents that advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
"We are very exciting about our 2008 schedule," said Smith. "With as many as 10 of the presumptive top 20 programs on our schedule this season, it will certainly expose any weak areas in our team. It's definitely the type of schedule that will prepare us for the postseason. We look forward to the challenge."
Santa Clara, who finished last season with a 12-6-3 overall record, will play nine contests in the recently upgraded Buck Shaw Stadium and will be seeking their 10th West Coast Conference crown and 20th consecutive bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Santa Clara opens the season against San Jose State in the Seventh Annual Rivalry Series. Kick off between the Broncos and Spartans is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at Spartan Stadium. Santa Clara then travels to the mid-west to take on BIG EAST powers West Virginia and Notre Dame in the Notre Dame adidas Classic. The Broncos face the Mountaineers on Aug. 29 at 2 p.m. (PT) and then battle the Fighting Irish on Aug. 31 at 10:30 a.m. (PT). Santa Clara then returns to California for four more contests before opening its home schedule. The Broncos take on the Trojans of USC on Sept. 5 in Los Angeles and then face the Titans of Cal State Fullerton on Sept. 7. The Broncos will then square off against UNC-Greensboro and North Carolina on Sept. 12 and 14, respectively, on the campus of Stanford University.
The Broncos open their home slate on Sept. 19 with the ninth annual Santa Clara adidas Classic. This year's tournament pool includes Cal Poly, Yale and Stanford. SCU begins the weekend against Cal Poly at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 19 and ends play on Sept. 21 against Yale at 1:30 p.m.
In a mid-week non-conference televised match, Santa Clara will host UCLA on Sept. 25. The contest is scheduled for 8 p.m. on Fox Soccer Channel. The Broncos then close out non-conference action against three of the toughest nationally recognized programs in Cal-Berkeley (Sept. 28), Stanford (Oct. 3) and Arizona (Oct. 5).
SCU opens conference play on Oct. 12 against San Diego. Kick off is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Buck Shaw Stadium. The Broncos remain at home to host Saint Mary's on Oct. 17 and San Francisco on Oct. 19. Santa Clara then hits the road to face Loyola Marymount on Oct. 24, Pepperdine on Oct. 26 and Portland on Nov. 2. The Broncos bring the 2008 regular season to a close on Nov. 8 against the Bulldogs of Gonzaga. The match is slated for a 1 p.m. start.
A potential 13th NCAA Tournament appearance for Santa Clara will begin on Dec. 5 at campus sites. NCAA regional action will be held on Dec. 12-13, with the national semifinals and finals matches on Dec. 18-20 in Omaha, Neb.
