Sweet 16 round of NCAA Women’s Soccer tournament and Elite 8 predictions

The third round of the NCAA Women’s Soccer Tournament was played, and it came down to eight teams still standing strong. Stanford knocked out Santa Clara on a direct free kick earned in the 38^th minute. Sophmore Teresa  Noyola scored the goal headed to the top right of the goal, which was only tipped by Bronco goalkeeper Bianca Henninger off the inside of the crossbar.

Boston defeated Wisconsin 1-0, and is in the Elite 8 for the first time in program history. Victioria DiMartino collided with a Wisconsin defender, but Brooke Knowlton picked up the loose ball and ripped a shot to the upper left corner from 22 yards out to score the lone goal in the 68^th minute.

Portland got through Virginia Tech with a rousing 4-1 win to get into the quarterfinals. Danielle Foxhoven gave Kendra Chandoke at the top of the 18. Chandhoke finished it and scored the first goal of the match in just the 4^th minute (also the first shot on goal for the Pilots). Virgina Tech scored just 2 minutes later when Julian Johnson received a pass from Robin Chidester. Johnson, with her back to the goal, turned quickly and blasted a shot to the far post past the Portland goalkeeper, Kelsey Davis. The Pilots responded with 3 more goals in the half. In the 10^th minute, Chandoke scored her second goal when a VA Tech defender tried to clear a rebound off goalkeeper Kristin Carden, but Chandoke charged her and knocked the ball into the goal. Four minutes later, Chandoke slotted a pass to Foxhoven who went 1-on-1 with Cardin. Foxhoven finished to the left post and scored her 24^th goal for the Pilots this year. Chandoke finished the scoring in the 34^th minute when she one-touched a pass from Sophie Schimdt into the goal for her 9^th goal of the season.

UCLA beat Virginia 3-0 on 2 goals from tournament-leading goal-scorer Sydney Leroux. Dea Cook scored off a corner kick taken by Lauren Barnes in the 4^th minute. Leroux scored before the first half ended in the 42^nd minute with a shot to the left corner of the goal.  She then sealed the win in the 89^th minute when a scramble in the box led to the ball bouncing to her. She got around two defenders and scored her 23^rd goal this year, tying with fellow forward Lauren Cheney.

UNC beat Maryland 1-0 in a very close game. Casey Nogueira blasted a powerful shot that curved away from Terp goalkeeper Mary Casey in the 81^st minute after the Maryland defense gave her time and space to trap and shoot the ball which was thrown in from the left side by Jessica McDonald.

Wake Forest defeated South Carolina in a last-second goal from Bess Harrington to advance to the quarter finals for the first time in program season. “I saw Jill Hutchinson sprinting to get the ball and take the corner,” Harrington said. “I could hear the clock winding down. I was just there and nobody was marking me and she put the ball in a perfect place. As soon as I saw the ball coming to me I said to myself `It’s going in, it’s going in’ and it went in.”

Notre Dame is in the quarter finals for the 6^th straight time, after beating Oregon State 1-0 in a very close game. Melissa Henderson outran a defender on the right side, then got around another at the goal line, and poked a ball across the penalty area, which Rose Augustin.

Florida State moved past Texas A&M in double overtime after the two played to a 1-1 tie. Jessica Price would get her 3 game-winning goal in the post season after she collected a pass from Tiffany McCarty and was able to get around 3 defenders and slot a low shot into the goal.

Quarterfinals schedule:

Stanford will face-off against Boston College on Friday at 7pm PT at Stanford, and has already sold out.

-Stanford

Portland will come down to play against UCLA on Saturday at 5pm PT.

-This will be a close game I think, but I’m going with UCLA on this one.

North Carolina will play Wake Forest on Friday at 2pm ET.

-UNC is a tough team to break down, and they play with a high backline. They will take this one.

Notre Dame vs Florida State on Friday at 2pm ET also.

-I’m giving the edge to Notre Dame.

Women’s College Cup: Elite Eight

November 23, 2008 – It was a showdown in Tinseltown.

Cross-town rivals USC and UCLA played last night before a record crowd in the Third Round of the NCAA Women’s Soccer Championships. It was a cool night and in typical SoCal fashion, spectators wore everything from shorts and flip flops to wool caps and winter coats (I was happy to have my coat).

With ties to both schools, I’m always torn about my allegiance but with a great season behind them, I was happy to see UCLA win at home and move on to the quarterfinals. They’ll play No. 3 seed Duke, who upset Virginia, next weekend.

USC faced the same team it beat 2-1 in last year’s NCAA Semifinals but unlike last year, where UCLA also took the first lead of the game, USC was unable to get to the back of the net.

UCLA dominated the entire game and had 17 shots to USC’s 6. During the final five minutes, the Bruins had a dangerous chance to pad its lead, but goal keeper Kristin Olsen came up big with two saves on tough shots to hold the game at 1-0.

The season-ending loss for the Women of Troy marked the final game for seven USC seniors, six of whom have been at USC for four years including Janessa Currier (defender), Kelley Finch (midfielder), Nini Loucks (midfielder), Ashley Nick (midfielder), Amy Rodriguez (forward – so fun to watch) and Stacey Strong (defender). The group has combined for 68 goals and 55 assists, with 19 goals and 21 assists coming off senior feet this season and no doubt a few tears were shed last night.

Meanwhile, UCLA, who played impressive D the entire night, broke the school record for shutouts in a season last night, posting its 19th of the year. The old record was 18 set by the 2005 team that advanced to the NCAA Final. The Bruins continue to lead the country in goals allowed, surrendering just four in 23 matches. Naturally, UCLA is our choice to win the cup this year.

In other NCAA College Cup news, the Portland Pilots earned a hard-fought 3-2 win over the visiting James Madison Dukes to advance to the quarterfinals for the fifth straight year.

The Cardinal held off Rutgers with a beautiful cross from Christen Press that found Kelley O’Hara at the top of the box and they will meet Portland next week at home.

Also – UNC scored a dominating win over Illinois and will next play Texas A&M; Notre Dame squeaked through in a surprising OT with Minnesota and will play Florida State in the quarterfinals.

Full Bracket

Green workouts and human powered gyms

September 11, 2008 – If you’re taking a trip to Portland, Oregon anytime soon,  visit the Alberta Arts district and check out the Green Microgym.  This new exercise facility utilizes energy generated by users to help power the building.  A total of 40% of its own electricity comes from solar panels and exercise machines like stationary bikes.

Green Microgym uses only energy-efficient lighting, ceiling fans and televisions. It also has a mostly paperless membership system. Its five elliptical machines are non-motorized and don’t require electricity.

An LA Times article called Calories come off and lights come on profiles the people-powered gym. There’s a prototype for an exercise machine that consists of four spin bikes attached to a small generator (pictured above). When the human-powered bikes are pedaled, a digital readout shows the amount of watts (a measure of power) produced by pedaling and turning an arm crank that strengthens the upper body. As many as four riders can propel the prototype system, which can produce 200 watts to 600 watts of energy an hour. Cool, huh?

If you can’t make it to Portland, here are some tips for making your workout greener:

Go Carless to the Gym: One mile in a car can equal up to 1 pound of carbon released into the atmosphere. Walking or jogging to the gym not only reduces your carbon footprint; it is a great way to warm up. By the time you get there, your muscles are stretched and you’re ready to jump right into your workout.

Stay off the Treadmills: Treadmills are major electricity guzzlers, but most other machines are self-powered or use no electricity at all.

Buy a Reusable Water Bottle: Whether you buy a plastic or metal bottle, this tip is a no-brainer. Keep hydrated without loading the landfills.

Think about it. It’s easy to  shrink your waistline and your carbon footprint – all at once!