No. 5 Virginia Women's Soccer Travels to Los Angeles for UCLA Women's Cup
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Sept. 6, 2002
This Weekend’s Games
No. 5 Virginia (1-0, 0-0 ACC)at No. 2 UCLA (1-0, 0-0 Pac-10)
No. 5 Virginia (1-0, 0-0 ACC)vs. USC (0-2, 0-0 Pac-10)
The fifth ranked Cavaliers take to the road for their first and longest road trip of the season as they travel to Los Angeles for the UCLA Women’s Cup. On Friday, the Cavaliers will play the host and fellow Top 5 team UCLA. Sunday, Virginia will meet USC. The Cavaliers and Bruins are both coming off impressive wins in their openers as Virginia downed Saint Joseph’s 7-0 last weekend while UCLA topped San Diego 6-0. The Trojans suffered two shutout losses at the Nebraska Tournament last weekend, falling to Wisconsin 1-0 and North Carolina 2-0.
Cavalier-Bruin Series: This weekend marks the second all-time meeting between the schools. The first meeting came in 1995, when the teams met in Livermore, Calif. and played to a 1-1 draw.
Cavalier-Trojan Series: Sunday marks the first ever meeting between Virginia and USC in women’s soccer.
UVa vs. The Pac-10: UCLA and USC are the only two Pac-10 opponents on the Cavaliers’ 2002 regular season schedule. Overall, the Cavaliers have a 4-3-1 record against Pac-10 opponents.
Last Time Out: Virginia 7, St. Joseph’s 0
The Cavaliers opened the 2002 season with their biggest win in a season opener, downing Saint Joseph’s 7-0 at Kl?ckner Stadium. Sarah Lane scored two goals, while Lindsay Gusick, Kelly Worden, Kristen Weiss, Aly Benitez, and Noelle Keselica all added one for Virginia. The Cavaliers outshot the Hawks 35-2 in the contest as Anne Abernethy recorded the shutout for UVa.
Virginia Second in Preseason ACC Poll: The Cavaliers were projected second in the ACC this season in the preseason poll on the league’s coaches. North Carolina was tabbed as the conference favorite, followed by Virginia, Clemson, Florida State, Duke, Wake Forest, Maryland, and N.C. State.
In the Polls: The Cavaliers are currently ranked No. 5 in the NSCAA/adidas coaches poll. Virginia placed No. 2 in this week’s Soccer America and Soccer Buzz polls, and No. 4 in the Soccer Times poll.
Challenging Schedule Ahead: The Cavaliers’ 2002 schedule will be a challenging, as 11 of their 17 regular season opponents participated in last year’s NCAA Tournament. Seven opponents are currently ranked in the Top 25 by the NSCAA, including No. 1 North Carolina and No. 2 UCLA.
Back for More: The Cavaliers return eight starters and 14 letterwinners from last year’s team. Last season’s leading scorer, Lindsay Gusick, returns after leading the conference in goals as a freshman in 2001. Fellow All-ACC selection Kelly Worden and All-ACC freshman team member Jessica Trainor also return.
Welcome Additions: The Cavaliers’ 2002 freshman class was ranked as the No. 3 recruiting class in the nation by Soccer Buzz Magazine and the top class in the Mid Atlantic region by Soccer Buzz.
USA!!, USA!!: Freshman midfielder Sarah Huffman is still to make her Virginia debut as she spent August playing for the United States U-19 national team that won the gold at the U-19 World Championships in Canada. Huffman appeared in several games and had the assist on the game-winning goal of the American’s 6-0 first round victory over Chinese Taipei.
Kl?ck-work at Home: Last season the Cavaliers went 11-2 at Kl?ckner Stadium. The 11 home wins in a season set a new school record. The Cavaliers arew 1-0 at home in 2002.
Former Cavaliers Named to ACC 50th Anniversary Team: Four former Virginia women’s soccer players were named to the Atlantic Coast Conference 50th Anniversary team this summer. Amanda Cromwell (1988-1991), Angela Hucles (1996-1999), Lori Lindsey (1998-2001), and Andrea Rubio (1989-1992) were all named to the team.
Moving On Up: The 2001 Cavaliers posted a 17-4-2 record following a 11-8-1 2000 season. That improvement of 5.0 games was tied for tenth among the biggest improvements by Division I teams last year.
Quick Start: Virginia head coach Steve Swanson compiled a 28-12-3 record in his first two seasons in Charlottesville. The 28 wins are the most by any Virginia women’s soccer coach in their first two seasons leading program, topping Lauren Gregg and April Heinrichs who both won 26 games in the first two seasons at Virginia.
Winning Everywhere: Head coach Steve Swanson is one win away from 30 victories during his tenure with the Cavaliers. Once he reaches that mark, he will become only the third women’s soccer coach in NCAA history to win 30 or more games at three different Division I schools (Randy Waldrup, Gary Ryan).