BY SCOTT FRENCH
Senior Editor
in Austin, Texas

The promise of Sunday's all-West Coast Conference showdown in the NCAA Women's College Cup final is intoxicating: Santa Clara and Portland are spirited practitioners of the beautiful game — they're the Holland and Brazil of college women's soccer — and their meetings have a mythic quality to them.

That bodes well for those without a rooting interest when the rivals square off at the University of Texas' Mike A. Myers Stadium (2 p.m. CST, ESPN) for the Division I title. Even those with everything at stake are looking forward to the entertainment.

''When we played Portland [in a WCC clash] on Nov. 3, my players were asking me if there was something wrong with me because I was so cheerful the day before the match,'' Santa Clara coach Jerry Smith said on the eve of the championship. ''I'm always happy to playing in a good soccer match, where there's tactical decisions, and the game has nice ebb and flow, and it's not just running around.

''Both of us really rely on tactics more than, maybe, athleticism to be successful, and that's always fun from a coaching perspective. I think it's fun for our players, too, because we train them all year long on reading situations and anticipating what's going to happen, and we're proud of the fact that our players are very tactically aware. That's only useful when you're playing a tactical soccer match, where you can anticipate what's going to go on.''

The Broncos and Pilots, along with North Carolina and perhaps UCLA (and, certainly this year, Stanford), constitute the elite of the sport. Theirs is a level that the best of the rest dream of approaching. Notre Dame was once there; Texas may soon join up.

It's about tactics — Santa Clara and Portland prefer a dynamic possession game marked by individual skill and creativity, by intricate buildup and envisioned passing, and by intelligent, aggressive defending — and talent.

Broncos midfielder Aly Wagner and Pilots striker Christine Sinclair are the top two players in the college game, blossoming international stars who fulfil the most critical roles on their teams.

Wagner is a playmaker of consummate ability — U.S. women's national team coach April Heinrichs calls her the best passer in the world — around whom Santa Clara's attack revolves. Sinclair, who has scored 33 goals in 40 international matches for Canada's national team, is a world-class finisher. She's netted 24 Portland's 46 goals this year while scoring another 17 for Canada's full and under-19 national teams.

Wagner is accompanied in midfield by Devvyn Hawkins, who is on the cusp of the U.S. national team, and either Veronica Zepeda or Leslie Osborne, both youth national team veterans. Zepeda, the Broncos' top one-on-one attacker, scored two beauties in the 2-1 semifinal win Friday over North Carolina. Osborne is Santa Clara's most versatile player, seeing regular time up front, next to Wagner and as a holding midfielder. The back line, a concern earlier in the season, has solidified behind Jessica Ballweg, one of three Broncos from the world champion U.S. U-19 team (with Osborne and forward Megan Kakadelas), and Chardonnay Poole. Freshman Micaela Esquivel has been a revelation in midfield and at right back.

Portland, which got goals from Sinclair and Wanda Roswadowska in a 2-0 triumph over Penn State in the semifinals, boasts an outstanding back line anchored by Lauren Orlandos and backed by charismatic goalkeeper Lauren Arase, and one of the nation's best midfields. Betsy Barr (sister of Washington Freedom defender Emmy Barr, daughter of former major-league pitcher Jim Barr) is a holding midfielder and key to Portland's possession game. Erin Misaki and Lindsey Huie are the often dazzling creators.

Santa Clara leads the series, 11-8-1, with a 1-0 victory in November (on Bree Horvath's 10th-minute goal). Fourteen of 16 meetings since 1989 have been determined by two or fewer goals. The Broncos have won four of the past five — after capturing just one of the previous seven — but three of those were one-goal victories.

This is the third time conference rivals have met in the Division I final. North Carolina topped North Carolina State in 1988 and Duke in 1992 in all-Atlantic Coast Conference affairs.

SUNDAY'S FINAL

PORTLAND (18-4-3) VS. SANTA CLARA (20-4-1)
2 p.m. CST. TV: ESPN, live

Portland synopsis: Clive Charles says this is the most technically gifted side the Pilots have ever fielded, and when Canadian national-teamer Christine Sinclair is on the field, they're nearly unbeatable. She's scored 24 of Portland's 46 goals, but this is no one-woman show. Lauren Orlandos anchors a solid back line, and the midfield — seniors Betsy Barr and Erin Misaki and fab freshman Lindsey Huie — might be the nation's best. Barr was superb in the semifinal win over Penn State, and Orlandos and fellow central defender Imani Dorsey did an outstanding job limiting the danger posed by Christie Welsh. How well they deal with the Broncos' multifaceted attack will be key.
Key players: G Lauren Arase, Sr. (0.34 GAA, 13 shutouts); M Betsy Barr, Sr. (1 goal-1 assist); D Imani Dorsey, Jr. (0-0); M Lindsey Huie, Fr. (5-7); M Erin Misaki, Sr. (6-7); D Kristen Moore, Soph. (0-3); D Lauren Orlandos, Sr. (1-1); F Emily Patterson, Sr. (1-9); D Kristen Rogers, Soph. (1-4); F Wanda Rozwadowska, Jr. (5-5); F Christine Sinclair, Soph. (24-3).
Head coach: Clive Charles (14th season, 224-52-14).
Road to College Cup: Defeated Idaho State (3-0), Utah (3-0) and Richmond (4-0), tied Stanford (0-0, advanced on penalties, 4-2), defeated Penn State (2-0).
Previous final-four appearances: 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2001.
School enrollment: 2,800.

Santa Clara synopsis: It took awhile for the Broncos to hit stride this year, which is how Coach Jerry Smith said it would be. It took awhile to cement the back line, which had been depleted by graduation, and the absences of U.S. U-19s Jessica Ballweg, Megan Kakadelas and Leslie Osborne at season's start and U.S. national-teamer Aly Wagner at various points along the way didn't make things easy. Everything's humming along wonderfully now. The attack revolves around Wagner, and a healthier Veronica Zepeda and Ballweg's move to central defense have been critical. Zepeda, who suffered a strained shoulder near the end of the semifinal win over North Carolina, is the premier 1-on-1 player in college soccer; she's scored four of her seven goals in the postseason. Devvyn Hawkins might be the best holding midfielder in the country. Osborne is Santa Clara's most versatile and critical player, able to fill in anywhere on the field no matter the situation.
Key players: D Holly Azevedo, Soph. (0 goals-0 assists); D Jessica Ballweg, Soph. (1-0); D Jaclyn Campi, Soph. (0-0); D Lana Bowen, Soph. (1-3); F Kristi Candau, Jr. (13-2); D-M Micaela Esquivel, Fr. (6-3); M Devvyn Hawkins, Sr. (5-5); F Tracy Hess, Jr. (4-0); F Bree Horvath, Soph. (3-4); F Megan Kakadelas, Soph. (7-14); F-M Leslie Osborne, Soph. (11-10); D Chardonnay Poole, Jr. (1-0); G Alyssa Sobolik, Soph. (0.80 GAA, 4 shutouts); M Aly Wagner, Sr. (9-9); F-M Veronica Zepeda, Jr. (7-2). Head coach: Jerry Smith (16th season, 262-64-15).
Road to the College Cup: Defeated Creighton (5-1), Arizona State (5-1), Nebraska (3-2), Michigan (3-1) and North Carolina (2-1).
Previous final-four appearances: 1989, 1990, 1992, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001. Championships: 2001. School enrollment: 7,000.

Prediction: Portland 2 Santa Clara 1.