Category: College Soccer Reporter

Bradley’s emotional season continued when it stunned Maryland, 3-2, in overtime and moved into the quarterfinals for the first time. An epic Maryland collapse sent the game into overtime, where Bradley won on a golden goal Maryland coach Sasho Cirovski called “a great imitation of the Hand of God goal.” Cirovski termed the loss the most difficult in his 15 years with the Terrapins but also lauded the effort of the Braves whose season that had begun in tragedy continued in triumph.

Paul Kennedy examines the upset of the year
Massachusetts’ 2-1 victory over No. 1 seed Boston College Wednesday night will go down as one of the biggest upsets in the history of the NCAA Division I Men’s Tournament, but it certainly wasn’t a fluke. The Minutemen came back from a 1-0 deficit at halftime and owned the second half. The victory was just reward for their coach, Sam Koch, who has preached the team concept and spent wisely.

For the second year in a row, unseeded Old Dominion has won two games to advance to the round of 16 in the NCAA Division I Men’s Tournament. The five other holdovers from last year’s Sweet 16 that are still alive are all seeds: No. 2 Wake Forest, No. 7 Santa Clara No. 10 Notre Dame, No 12 UC Santa Barbara No. 13 Maryland. Play resumes with two games Saturday and six on Sunday.

[ELITE 8 COUNTDOWN] With a team that includes 2006 Hermann Trophy winner Kerri Hanks and two other semifinalists, Brittany Bock and Amanda Cinalli, for the 2007 award, it’s no surprise that Notre Dame is back in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division I Women’s Tournament. The surprise is how the Irish could have gone 3-4-1 in their first eight games. A big reason for Notre Dame’s postseason charge has been the return to form of Michelle Weissenhofer, the 2006 Soccer America Freshman of the Year.

Legendary coach Cliff McCrath isn’t about to head into the sunset quietly. Ten days after Seattle Pacific University announced that the 71-year-old McCrath had resigned only nine wins short of tying the college record for wins held by Joe Bean of Wheaton College (where he had gotten his start in coaching in 1958), McCrath revealed he had received almost 900 e-mails of support.

The only matchup of 1-2 seeds in Friday’s quarterfinals is UCLA-Portland in Westwood. The Bruins beat the Pilots, 2-1, when they met in late September. Since then, both teams have been perfect. UCLA has won 14 in a row. Portland has won 11 straight games — the last nine by shutouts — since the return of U.S. national team defender Stephanie Lopez from the Women’s World Cup. For all of the Friday matches …

The NCAA Division II Men’s Tournament moves into the semifinals at the Orange Beach Sportsplex in Orange Beach, Ala., where there will be an international flavor. Lincoln Memorial and Montevallo could start as many as 10 Brazilians between them. In the other semifinal, Midwestern State takes on Franklin Pierce, which could start players from as many as nine difference countries, including Bishara Etienne, who plays for potential U.S. World Cup 2010 qualifying foe Dominica. Sunday’s final will be telecast live on CSTV (kickoff: 2 pm ET).

[NCAA DIVISION II WOMEN] Both unbeaten teams fell Thursday in the semifinals of the NCAA Division II Women’s Tournament in Orange Beach, Fla. Tampa knocked off top-ranked Grand Valley State, 2-1, while Franklin Pierce beat Seattle Pacific, 2-0. The Spartans and Ravens meet in Saturday’s final in Orange Beach, Ala., to be televised live on CSTV (kickoff: 1 pm ET).

Defending champion UC Santa Barbara moved into the third round of the NCAA Division I Men’s Tournament with a 1-0 win over Washington before 9,641 fans, the largest crowd ever for a match so early in the tournament. No. 2 seed Connecticut and No. 3 Wake Forest had early goals hold up in second-round wins. No. 7 Santa Clara extended its unbeaten streak to 18 games with a 3-1 win over former champion UCLA. For all of Wednesday’s results and goal scorers and the weekend matchups …

Seattle Pacific takes a 23-game winning streak into Thursday’s semifinal against Franklin Pierce in the NCAA Division II Women’s Tournament. In the other semifinal, last year’s runner-up Grand Valley State faces Tampa. Saturday’s final in Orange Beach, Fla., will be broadcast live on CSTV at 1 pm ET.

Legendary Seattle Pacific men’s coach Cliff McCrath, who led the Falcons to five NCAA championships and won 597 victories in his 49 years of college coaching, has announced his retirement at the age of 71.

Notre Dame’s Joseph Lapira, winner of last year’s MAC Hermann Trophy, is one of the 15 semifinalists for the 2007 award. Lapira, who leads the Fighting Irish in points (25), goals (8) and assists (9) this season, will try to become the first back-to-back recipient of the award since Virginia’s Claudio Reyna took home the Hermann Trophy in 1992 and 1993.

Notre Dame’s Kerri Hanks, winner of last year’s MAC Hermann Trophy, heads the list of 15 semifinalists for the 2007 award. Hanks is one of three Irish players to make the cut along with Brittany Bock and Amanda Cinalli. Three players from UCLA were also selected: Danesha Adams, Lauren Cheney and Christina DiMartino.

[ELITE 8 COUNTDOWN] Three weeks ago, after losing in the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament, Duke wasn’t sure it would even make the NCAA Division I Women’s Tournament. Now the Blue Devils are one win away from going to the Women’s College Cup. Regardless of the outcome at Notre Dame Friday night, Robbie Church‘s women have accomplished something they’ve never done before in the history of the program: they’ve advanced farther in the NCAA Tournament than archrival North Carolina!

Tulsa takes a 10-game winning streak — the longest in the nation — into its second-round game Wednesday night against Central Connecticut. The Golden Hurricane capped its run in the Conference USA with a 3-2 win over FIU in the tournament final 10 days ago, but the victory was tempered by the news that leading scorer Todd Goddard‘s mother, Carol, had died that morning after a long battle with cancer.

Brown, which went undefeated in the 2007 Ivy season, dominated the year-end player awards. Canadian Matthew Britner was named Ivy League Player of the Year and freshman goalkeeper Paul Grandstrand was named Rookie of the Year. Five Bears earned first-team all-league honors and a sixth player was on the second team.

Diana Matheson only played in 10 games this season for Princeton, but her play was strong enough to be voted the 2007 Ivy League Player of the Year. The senior midfielder missed the Tigers’ first seven games playing for Canada at the Women’s World Cup in China.

[HISTORY] Vermont, unbeaten in its last eight games since starting the season at 4-9-0, will look to knock off top-ranked Connecticut Wednesday night when they meet in Storrs. The Catamounts won when they last met their former Yankee Conference rival in the NCAA Tournament in 1989. For more on Wednesday’s rivalries and all the matchups …

Paul Kennedy continues Women’s Elite 8 Countdown
A pipeline from Ontario to West Virginia has been an important factor in the success of the Mountaineers, who host USC Friday in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division I Women’s Tournament. Juniors Amanda Cicchini, Robin Rushton and Deana Everrett grew up playing together in Ontario and on Canadian select teams and have been keys to West Virginia’s march to the Elite 8 for the first time in its history.

Paul Kennedy begins Women’s Elite 8 Countdown
Florida State’s Mami Yamaguchi leads the NCAA Division I women’s ranks in points (62) and is second in goals (23) and assists (16), but the Japanese international is only part of the story in the Seminoles’ return to the Elite Eight for the third straight year. Coach Mark Krikorian has lived up to his reputation as one of the nation’s top recruiters, bringing in five first-year players who have played key roles for Florida State, which hosts Connecticut in Friday’s quarterfinal.

California lived up to its reputation as one of the best NCAA Division I Men’s Tournament hosts when it drew 3,479 fans Friday afternoon in Berkeley for its 2-1 win over UC Davis in their first-round game. A crowd of 2,034 turned out at Dartmouth’s new Burnham Field, one of the most fan-friendly facilities in New England, to watch the Big Green fall to Vermont in a doozy (penalty kicks in the first and last minutes followed by a shootout). SMU drew only 232 fans on a rainy evening to watch the Mustangs edge Gonzaga.

Florida State’s Mami Yamaguchi leads the NCAA Division I women’s scoring charts with 62 points on 23 goals and 16 assists and has a shot at catching Texas A&M’s Ashlee Pistorius, who leads the nation with 25 goals, and Notre Dame’s Kerri Hanks, the assist leader with 18.

Jamaican youth international O’Brian White has all but wrapped up the NCAA Division I men’s scoring titles in points (45 and counting) and goals (19) and Connecticut teammate Mike Pezza leads the nation with 16 assists.