Mavs Head to Virginia Beach to Play for Title
Nov 28, 2003 | Women's Soccer
The University of Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks will leave Tuesday morning for the NCAA Division II Women's Soccer final four tournament and will attempt to take home the national title after falling short last year in the final. The Mavs will play Kennesaw State in the semifinals Thursday at 5:30 p.m. EST at the Virginia Beach Sportsplex in Virginia Beach, Va., and the final is set for Saturday at 6 p.m. UNO (17-3-2) has dominated its opponents this year with 13 shutouts and only 17 goals allowed and went 4-1-1 against ranked opponents.
The 2003 final four field
UNO and Franklin Pierce are the only two schools making consecutive trips to the NCAA final four. The two met in the semifinals last year with UNO advancing with a 3-1 win. California-San Diego makes its third trip, with the first two resulting in national championships (2000, 2001). Kennesaw State is in its first trip to the final four and just its second trip to the NCAA tournament.
Second-ranked Kennesaw State, 23-1-0, is lead by Jenae Gzehoviak with 50 points (14 goals, 22 assists), Jessie Fream with 47 (19, 9 ) and Laura Tucker with 44 (20, 4). The Owls have 15 shutouts thanks to Jessica Marek's 0.48 goals allowed average, fifth best in the nation. The Owl's only loss this year came 2-1 from defending national champ Christian Brothers.
No. 7 Franklin Pierce's well-stocked offense features sophomore Laura Hislop with a nation- leading 83 points (30 goals, 23 assists) and All-American Meghan Welcome with 63 points (27 goals, 9 assists). Three others are in double digits and the Ravens (21-2-0) are outscoring opponents 84-18 thanks to senior goalkeeper Aase Kibsgaard's 0.77 goals allowed average. Head Coach Jeff Bailey is in his eight year with three national titles under his belt (1996, 1997, 1999) and he leads all active D II coaches with a .931 winning percentage.
Third-ranked UC San Diego, 18-2-1, returns to the final four after claiming back-to-back national titles in 2000 and 2001. The Tritons are led by Kristin Jones with 31 points (10 goals, 11 assists) and Kelly Cochran with 22 points (8 goals, 6 assists). Goalkeeper Kami Poma has a 0.85 goals allowed average. Head Coach Brian McManus is in his 17th year and in four years as a D II school, UCSD has won the California Collegiate Athletic Association title four times.
Pile uses her head to get career-first goal
As one of the tallest players on the field, sophomore defender Meghan Pile used her size and her head last Saturday to knock in a corner kick in overtime to send the Mavs back to the final four in Virginia Beach, Va. Her game-winning header came after attempting just nine previous shots in her two years as a Mav. In her career she now has five points with the goal and three assists.
Mavs headed back to beach for second chance
A perfect 22-0-0 record brought the Mavs into the championship game last year where high-powered Christian Brothers topped them 2-1 to claim the title. When CBU scored first last year it was the first time UNO was down in any game all year. The Mavs were able tie the score but the Buccaneers put them away with a second-half goal. This year the Mavs have found themselves down and were able to come back more than once, the last time coming in the opening round of the NCAA tournament against Truman State. UNO will bring a 17-3-2 record into the final four this year looking for another shot at the national title.
Players Mentioned
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