Aug. 21, 2012
Cal Notes 
Thursday, Aug. 23
4 p.m. - No. 15 Cal vs. No. 21 Santa Clara
Edwards Stadium - Berkeley
All-Time Record vs. SCU - 17-14-6
Last Meeting - T 1-1 (2 OT) on 11/12/11
Coverage: Twitter, Gametracker
Tickets: Adults $8, Senior $4, Youth/Students Free
Sunday, Aug. 26
3 p.m. - No. 15 Cal vs. No. 13 Missouri
Edwards Stadium - Berkeley
All-Time Record vs. Mizzou - 1-2-1
Last Meeting - L 4-0 on 9/21/07
Coverage: Pac-12 Networks, Twitter, GameTracker
Tickets: Adults $8, Senior $4, Youth/Students Free
BERKELEY - No. 15 Cal's homestand continues with two matches - Thursday against No. 21 Santa Clara and Sunday versus Missouri - the Missouri match being the first-ever Pac-12 Network broadcast of Cal women's soccer. On Thursday, Aug. 23, Cal will host Bay Area rival Santa Clara at 4 p.m. That game against the Broncos is a rematch of its NCAA Tournament first-round contest from last fall, when the Bears defeated the Broncos in penalty kicks, 4-3, after the teams tied, 1-1, in overtime. On Sunday, Aug. 26, Cal takes on Big 12 opponent Missouri in Berkeley. The contest against the Tigers will be the first of 10 matches broadcast live on the Pac-12 Networks.
Last Week on the Pitch
Cal opened its 2012 campaign with two decisive wins - a 3-0 victory over Pacific and a 5-2 win against San Jose State. In the season-starter against Pacific in Stockton on Aug. 17, Cal scored once in the first-half and then twice in the second half en route to a 3-0 shutout victory. Freshman Celeste Boureille got her Cal career off on the absolute best foot, scoring the Bears' first goal of the season and her first in the Blue & Gold with a strike in the 44th minute. Fresh off her first Olympic games, senior Betsy Hassett did not miss a step returning to her Bears for she scored Cal's second and third goals. Powered by a flurry of three goals from Grace Leer, the Bears overcame a 1-0 deficit to beat San Jose State 5-2 on Aug. 19. Scoring their first goals of the season were Thelma Einarsdottir and Ifeoma Onumonu, who tallied her first career goal.
In the Rankings
In the Top Drawer Soccer poll, Cal moved up four spots from No. 19 last week to No. 15. In the Soccer America rankings, Santa Clara is No. 21 while Missouri comes to Berkeley with a No. 13 ranking. The Broncos are slated as the No. 19 team in the Top Drawer Soccer rankings.
Leer Named Muscle Milk Student-Athlete of the Week
Redshirt sophomore Grace Leer scored a hat trick in California's Sunday's 5-2 come-from-behind win over San Jose State, making her this week's California Muscle Milk Student-Athlete of the Week. With the three goals, Leer ups her previous career goal count of two to five. After SJSU struck first, Leer equalized with her first goal of the game. With the teams tied 2-2, with just three minutes on the clock before halftime, Leer scored twice to give Cal a 4-2 first-half advantage. With her team down 1-0, and with fresh legs - subbing in just two minutes prior - Grace Leer scored her first goal of the year. Fitzpatrick crossed the ball in from the far side, and Leer collected the loose ball in the six-yard box and fired it in. In the 42nd minute, and flanked by multiple SJSU bodies and the SJSU keeper, Leer found her footing and waited for the perfect moment, when she flicked the ball in. then, with the 10-second countdown well underway and audible, Leer fired off a shot from six yards out, sending the Bears into the half with a two-goal lead.
Bears Outshoot Opponents
In classic California women's soccer fashion, the Bears are currently outshooting their opponents 45-14. That marks a differential of 15.5 per game with Cal averaging 22.5 per game and its opponents a measly 7.0. In the game against San Jose State, the Bears outshot the Spartans 19-5. Cal outshot its first opponent - Pacific - 26-9.
Five Goals Best in 15 Games
The five goals scored against San Jose State on Aug. 19 were the most Cal had scored in 15 games. Cal's most recent goal explosion of five goals or more occurred in a 6-1 win over San Francisco on Sept. 18, 2011.
Freshman Pair Score First Goals
In their very first weekend of play, freshmen Celeste Boureille and Ifeoma Onumonu both scored their inaugural career goals. Boureille got her Cal career off on the absolute best foot, scoring the Bears' first goal of the season and her first in the Blue & Gold with a strike in the 44th minute. Her goal was the ultimate gamewinner in the eventual 3-0 victory over Pacific on Aug. 17. In the 55th minute of the Aug. 19 game against San Jose State, Onumonu scored in front of the goal with Kory Lamet assisting.
Scouting Santa Clara
• In the regular-season meeting last year, Santa Clara defeated Cal 3-0 on Sept. 29, 2011
• After a 1-1 stalemate through regulation and two overtime periods, Cal defeated Santa Clara in penalty kicks 4-1 in the first round of the 2011 NCAA Tournament
• In their season-opener at No. 1 Stanford on Aug. 17, the Broncos scored first with a goal in the 13th minute and held that lead until the 47th minute, when the Cardinal began its 6-0 run
• Olivia Klei scored Santa Clara's lone goal against defending national champion Stanford
• SCU was without its top two scorers from last year with Julie Johnston and Sofia Huerta currently competing at the U-20 World Cup
• The West Coast Conference coaches picked Santa Clara to win the title
• Four Broncos - Johnston, Huerta, Meleana Shim and Ellie Rich - led the conference on the preseason All-WCC Team
Previewing Missouri
• The Bears and Tigers last met in Neil McGuire's first year in Berkeley - on Sept. 21, 2007, when Missouri defeated Cal 3-0 in Columbia
• Alyssa Diggs has a team-high three goals while Taiwo Adeshigbin scored twice
• The Tigers outscored their opponents 7-1 on opening weekend and outshot them 31-18
• McKenzie Sauerwein (2-0) played all 180 minutes between the post last weekend, making five saves and allowing one goal
• Missouri dropped No. 11 Memphis 5-1 to start the season on Aug. 17 then defeated UC Santa Barbara 2-0 on Aug. 19
• Four of Missouri's goals versus Memphis came in a nine-minute span at the front-end of the second half
• Freshman Candace Johnson was named the SEC Freshman of the Week after she scored once and started both games
• The Tigers scored both their goals against the Gauchos in the first 15 minutes of the game
• In their first year in the conference, the Tigers were slated to finish fifth in the SEC Eastern Division
Next Week on the Pitch
Cal takes its second road trip of the year, heading down the coast to San Luis Obispo. On Friday, Aug. 31, the Bears play Cal Poly at 6 p.m. It's a quick trip for Cal returns to the friendly confines of Edwards Stadium for a noon match-up on Sept. 2 against San Francisco. That match will be broadcast on the Pac-12 Networks.
McGuire Climbs Victory Chart
With 12 victories last season and two this year, head coach Neil McGuire now has 59 career wins in his sixth season with the Golden Bears. Last year, McGuire's victory against USC on Oct. 9, 2011 moved him past Andy Bonchonsky (1991-96) and into third place on the school's all-time coaching victories list. He owns a 59-35-12 career record at Cal. McGuire enters Thursday's match just two wins shy of second-place Bill Merrell, who posted a 61-20-8 record from 1983-85.
International Golden Bears
Returning to Berkeley freshly off the international pitch are senior midfielder Betsy Hassett and junior defender Ariana Martinez. After playing in last summer's FIFA World Cup, Hassett rejoined the New Zealand National Team for the London Olympics. Last season in Berkeley, Hassett played in all 22 matches with 18 starts in the midfield and was a second-Team All-Pac-12 selection. Martinez - who is also a member of the Mexican Senior National Team - is currently playing in this summer's U-20 World Cup in Japan as part of the Mexican squad. Martinez transferred to Cal from UCLA and will have two years of eligibility left in Berkeley.
Join the Bears in the Social Media Realm
This season, fans of the prestigious California women's soccer team can get even closer to the Golden Bears - through Facebook, Twitter and the Cal Athletics YouTube channel. By following the California women's soccer team on its social media, fans can get even closer to the team, get breaking-news alerts, see photos and get other inside information. The Cal women's soccer Facebook page features links to CalBears.com stories, polls, insider photos as well as YouTube videos highlighting the Bears. Cal women's soccer Twitter is the best place to find game results, links to stories as well as photos and other insider information. Additionally, Cal women's soccer videos will be posted on the Cal Athletics YouTube channel and then linked on social media.
Remembering Last Season
In 2011, Cal won 12 matches - its most since 2007 - and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Championship. The Bears, who climbed as high as No. 11 in the national rankings during the year, knocked off Santa Clara on the road in the opening round of NCAAs and nearly advanced to the third round of the tournament, falling to No. 16 Boston College in penalty kicks. Four Bears earned All-Pac-12 honors - Danielle Brunache, Betsy Hassett, Lauren Battung and Kaitlyn Fitzpatrick - and a record 13 individuals were named to the Pac-12 All-Academic team, with Hassett also gaining NSCAA Scholar All-American recognition.
A Look at Cal's Schedule
All but two of Cal's home matches (Santa Clara and Washington State) this fall will be televised on the Pac-12 Networks. The 2012 slate features 10 home contests at Edwards Stadium/Goldman Field, with eight set to be televised by the conference's new networks. The demanding fall slate includes five teams - Oregon State, Santa Clara, Stanford, UCLA and Washington State - that earned a berth in the 2011 NCAA Tournament, including the defending NCAA champion Cardinal.
Pac-12 Coaches Predict Cal to Finish Third
The Conference coaches foresee the California women's soccer team taking third place in the Pac-12, according to the preseason poll released Monday. The third-place slating equals the 2007 predication, which was the highest forecast in the past six years. The 12 coaches selected defending national champion Stanford as the preseason favorite.
Cal's Morgan, U.S. Win Gold by Beating Japan
Former Golden Bear Alex Morgan and the U.S. Women's National Team defeated Japan 2-1 to win gold on Aug. 9 at the London Olympics. Morgan - a four-year letterwinner with the California women's soccer team - assisted on the Americans' first goal. Morgan scored thrice - including one gamewinner - over the course of the London Games, which were the Diamond Bar, Calif., native's first Olympic outing. She had played in the 2011 FIFA World Cup, taking silver with the Americans.
A Golden Olympics for the Golden Bears
A total of 46 Golden Bear athletes, coaches and staff members represented Cal during the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, and together, they brought home a school-record-tying 17 medals (11 gold, 1 silver, 5 bronze). The Bears have won 50 medals over the past three Olympics (16 in 2004, 17 in 2008, 17 in 2012), and they have captured 178 medals all-time (99 gold).
Cal No. 1 Public University in the Country
The University of California is the No. 1-ranked public university in the United States, according to U.S. News and World Report. The faculty has won 22 Nobel Prizes, including nine current members, while 28 alumni have received a Nobel Prize. A National Research Council analysis of U.S. universities concluded that the campus has the largest number of highly ranked graduate programs in the country (48 of 52). Cal also has a long commitment to public service, with more than 4,000 students annually doing volunteer work and more than 3,000 Peace Corps participants all-time.
