CALIFORNIA STATE POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY, POMONA

Bronco Sports News

For Immediate Release

Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2003

Contact: Paul Helms

(909) 869-2812

 

 

WOMEN’S SOCCER

MEDIA NOTES

 

2003 CPP Record: 9-7-1. CCAA Record: 7-6-0 (21 points)

Regional Ranking: 10 (NSCAA)

 

Broncos Still Alive In Quest For CCAA Championship Tournament: Cal Poly Pomona’s women’s soccer team, fresh off a resounding 6-1 victory over Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday, can still advance to the CCAA Championship Tournament for a sixth straight season. The Broncos’ lopsided win over the Coyotes, coupled with UC San Diego’s 2-1 win over Cal State San Bernardino on Monday, left the door open for another championship tourney appearance. The Broncos need a victory at No. 3 UC San Diego on Wednesday at 5 p.m. in order to gain the wildcard entry into the CCAA Championship Tournament, which begins Friday at Cal State Dominguez Hills. A UC San Diego win or a tie will give Cal State San Bernardino the bid. The Coyotes currently have 23 points, while Cal Poly Pomona has 21 points.

 

What’s At Stake: The Broncos have a chance to extend their season with a win over UC San Diego on Wednesday. A loss or tie to the Tritons ends the season for Cal Poly Pomona. If the Broncos win, they will face Central Division champion Cal State Dominguez Hills in a first-round tournament game on Friday at Cal State Dominguez Hills. Game time will either be 11 a.m. or 1:30 p.m. The conference championship game will be held Sunday at 11:30 a.m. North Division champion Sonoma State, Central Division champion Cal State Dominguez Hills and South Division champion UC San Diego have already qualified for the tourney. Either Cal Poly Pomona or Cal State San Bernardino will earn the wildcard.

 

Last Week: Cal Poly Pomona won its second straight game with a 6-1 victory over Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday at Kellogg Field. The win denied the Coyotes a chance to clinch the conference wildcard and enabled the Broncos to keep their championship tournament hopes alive. Michelle McConnell (Sr., Alta Loma, Alta Loma HS), who was the target of a physical Cal State San Bernardino defense, led the onslaught, recording her third career hat trick and contributing two assists as well. The eight points were a new career high for McConnell. Lisa Araujo (Jr., Rialto, Eisenhower HS) got the Broncos on the board first with her fifth goal of the season in the 23rd minute of the game. Araujo got free after a nice give-and-go with Erica Rodriguez (So., San Diego, Bonita Vista HS) and drilled a shot into the net. The Broncos took the 1-0 lead into halftime and then exploded for five second-half goals to turn the game into the most lopsided contest in the series history between the two programs. Bethany Inoshita (Fr., Ventura, Ventura HS) made it 2-0 early in the second half after heading in a shot from McConnell that bounced off the crossbar. Five minutes later, McConnell set up Rodriguez for her third goal of the season to make it 3-0. Then, after the Coyotes scored their lone goal, McConnell put the game away with three goals in an 18-minute span. Her first goal came with an assist from Inoshita in the 69th minute. Then, she made a long run, dribbled through a pair of defenders and shot the ball past the Cal State San Bernardino goalie. Her final goal came after a beautiful pass from Leia Baldaray (Jr., Riverside, Arlington HS). She shot the ball into an empty net. Nohea Kuiee (Sr., Livermore, Ohlone College) also got an assist on the goal. Vanessa Richardson (So., Upland, Upland HS) made two saves for the Broncos. Before the game, the Broncos honored four seniors – McConnell, Kuiee, Jenna Sanders (Sr., Temple City, Pasadena CC) and Tara Chance (Sr., Alta Loma, Alta Loma HS), who played in their final home games for the Broncos.

 

Scouting the Opposition: The Broncos have an all-time record of 6-17-1 against UC San Diego, including a series of hard-fought and disappointing losses in recent years. The Tritons beat the Broncos, 2-1, in overtime at Kellogg Field on Sept. 13. Heather Sugg’s goal just four minutes into the extra period gave the Tritons the win. The Broncos are 0-4-1 in their last five matches against the Tritons. Three of the four losses came by one goal and the other came by two. The last Cal Poly Pomona win against UC San Diego came in La Jolla on Oct. 24, 2001 on an overtime goal by Lisa Araujo.

 

Rankings: Cal Poly Pomona has fallen out of the national Top-25. The Broncos opened the season ranked 14th in the nation and climbed to 12th after the victories over Fresno Pacific and Western Oregon. Cal Poly Pomona finished 25th in the nation in 2002, its fourth straight finish in the national Top 25. The Broncos were second in 1999, 18th in 2000, ninth in 2001 and 25th last year. The Broncos finished in a tie for third in the final regional rankings last season, but lost out to San Francisco State for the third and final playoff spot. Cal Poly Pomona is 10th in the latest regional rankings.

 

Taking A Chance: The Broncos are benefiting from the return of All-America defender Tara Chance (Sr., Alta Loma, Alta Loma HS). Chance was a third-team All-American in 2001, but suffered a season-ending knee injury in the fourth game of the 2002 season. In her first five games back with the Broncos, Cal Poly Pomona posted three shutouts and allowed only three goals. Chance earned third-team All-America honors in 2001 after spearheading a defense that set a new program record for fewest goals allowed (13). She also scored the game-winning goal in the Broncos’ season opener that year, against Azusa Pacific, in a 1-0 victory. This season, Chance was named the Brine CCAA Player of the Week for the week of Aug. 26 – Sept. 1 after leading the Broncos to shutout victories over Fresno Pacific and Western Oregon. Chance picked up her first assist of the season when she helped Lisa Araujo (Jr., Rialto, Eisenhower HS) score the Broncos’ only goal against Cal State Bakersfield on Sept. 28 and she scored her first goal of the season on Oct. 3 against Sonoma State. She added her second assist of the season on a goal by Karen Lawrence (Fr., Upland, Upland HS) against Chico State on Oct. 10.

 

Moving Up The Charts: Michelle McConnell (Sr., Alta Loma, Alta Loma HS) continues her fantastic Cal Poly Pomona career and made her final game at Kellogg Field one to remember. McConnell, who has led the Broncos in scoring the past two years, is leading Cal Poly Pomona again this season. She has eight goals and nine assists for 25 total points. She recorded her third career hat trick and added two assists to lead the Broncos to a 6-1 win over Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday. She was named the Brine CCAA Player of the Week for the week of Sept. 29 – Oct. 5 after leading the Broncos to wins over San Francisco State and Sonoma State.  McConnell continues her climb up the Cal Poly Pomona career lists. The eight goals give her 31 for her Cal Poly Pomona career, which is third on the all-time list. Her eight assists give her 29, which ties Ruth Van’t Land-Parkes’ record.  She now has 91 total points, which is second all-time to Van’t Land’s 181.

 

Look Who’s Back: Cal Poly Pomona has some talented players returning from its 2002 squad that finished with an 11-6-2 overall record. The Broncos have seven starters and 12 players in all returning. Michelle McConnell (Sr., Alta Loma, Alta Loma HS) has led the team in scoring for the past two seasons. She earned first-team All-CCAA and second-team All-West Region honors last season after scoring eight goals with seven assists despite missing five matches due to a stress fracture in her shin. Lisa Araujo (Jr., Rialto, Eisenhower HS) tied for the team lead in goals scored last year with eight and earned first-team All-CCAA and second-team All-West Region honors. Erica Rodriguez (So., San Diego, Bonita Vista HS) was one of the most pleasant surprises last season and had five goals and three assists. Chelsea Hipley (So., Sacramento, Woodcreek HS) had a solid debut and earned second-team All-CCAA honors after finishing third on the team in scoring with four goals and 16 points. Vanessa Richardson (So., Upland, Upland HS) started four games last season and was ready to assume the No. 1 goaltender position this year. Richardson was 3-1-1 last year with a 1.06 goals against average. And, of course, Tara Chance (Sr., Alta Loma, Alta Loma HS) returns after missing most of the 2002 season with a knee injury.

 

Look Who’s New: The Broncos are very excited about what they consider an outstanding recruiting class. Devon Nizich (Fr., San Pedro, San Pedro HS) is one of the team’s playmakers and, in the team’s first 17 matches, she has one goal and two assists. Kristi Ibello (Fr., Santa Rosa, Santa Rosa HS) is another top newcomer who is expected is making significant contributions and Nicole Munoz (Jr., Claremont, Mt. San Antonio College) is starting to be a major factor as a midfielder after battling some injury woes. Bethany Inoshita (Fr., Ventura, Ventura HS) has helped solidify the defense and she’s shown some offensive punch as well, scoring three goals and contributing two assists. Karen Lawrence (Fr., Upland, Upland HS) has added some pop to the lineup and is tied for fourth on the team in scoring with Inoshita with three goals and two assists.

 

About The Coach: One of the most recognizable names in United States soccer history, Paul Caligiuri is in his second year as Cal Poly Pomona’s head coach. He guided the Broncos to an 11-6-2 record last season despite several injuries to key players. He has a 20-13-3 overall record with the Broncos. Caligiuri is a former member of the Los Angeles Galaxy and United States National Team member. One of the most memorable moments of his playing career came in 1990 when he scored the game-winning goal – known as the “Goal Heard Round The World” – against Trinidad & Tobago that qualified the U.S. for its first World Cup appearance in 40 years. Caligiuri made 110 game appearances for the United States National Team.

 

CAL POLY POMONA

Women’s Soccer

 

CPP Schedule & Results

 

8/28     at Fresno Pacific                                   W 4-0

8/31     vs. Western Oregon                              W 1-0

9/3       at Concordia-Irvine                              T 1-1

9/9       vs. Grand Canyon*                               W 3-0

9/13     vs. UC San Diego*                               L 1-2 (OT)

9/16     at CS San Bernardino*                         L 3-5

9/19     at Cal State L.A.*                                W 3-1

9/22     at CS Dominguez Hills*                        L 0-1

9/26     vs. Cal State Stanislaus*                       W 1-0

9/28     vs. Cal State Bakersfield*                     L 1-4

10/3     vs. Sonoma State*                                W 3-2

10/5     vs. San Francisco State*                       W 3-2

10/10   at Chico State*                                     L 2-3

10/12   at UC Davis*                                       L 0-2

10/15   vs. Pt. Loma Nazarene                         L 0-4

10/25   at Grand Canyon*                                W 1-0

11/1     vs. CS San Bernardino*                       W 6-1

11/5     at UC San Diego*                                5 p.m.

 

*Denotes CCAA Game