USC pulled off one of the biggest upsets in the history of the NCAA Division I Women's Tournament when it beat No. 1 seed Santa Clara, 1-0, in the first round on Friday night before a stunned crowd at Buck Shaw Stadium.
After 11 straight years of reaching the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals, fate finally caught up to the Broncos. U.S. international Amy RodriguezÆs scored in the 87th minute, slotting a ball to the near corner after a failed SCU clearing attempt to break a 0-0 tie. The Women of Troy advance to SundayÆs second-round contest at Buck Shaw Stadium against Stanford.
ôIÆm very proud of my team, I think they played well today. We have to take our hats off to USC and congratulate them on their victory,ö said Santa Clara coach Jerry Smith. ôWe did a lot of things right today, but like all sports, soccer is a game of inches, and we hit the post once, and had some close misses.ö