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No. 1 Mountaineers Play for National Championship
December 03, 2016 08:46 PM | Women's Soccer
SAN JOSE, Calif. – An NCAA Championship is on the line when the No. 1-ranked West Virginia University women’s soccer team takes the field in the College Cup Final, as the top-seeded Mountaineers kick against No. 7-ranked and second-seeded USC on Sunday, Dec. 4, at Avaya Stadium, at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT.
The last game of the 2016 season, the match will be broadcast nationally on ESPNU, with Jenn Hildreth on the call and Julie Foudy providing color.
The Mountaineer Sports Network from IMG will broadcast the match locally on WZST-FM, 100.9, Morgantown/Fairmont following the WVU women’s basketball match against Ole Miss at 4 p.m. ET, and on WMMN-AM (920). Out-of-market Mountaineer fans can catch the broadcast online at WVUsports.com or on the TuneIn app through their mobile devices, following the women’s basketball game. Andrew Caridi will handle the call.
Fans in Morgantown can watch the match on the WVU Coliseum video board following the women’s basketball team’s game.
WVU (23-1-2, 8-0) will play for the program’s first NCAA National Championship. With a win, the Mountaineers would become the second program in school history to earn an NCAA title; the WVU rifle team owns 18 national championships.
A win Sunday also would be the first national title for a Big 12 Conference team.
“I’m looking forward to playing such a fast, technical and quick team,” Mountaineer coach Nikki Izzo-Brown said. “I had the pleasure of watching them play Georgetown, and we’re going to have our hands full tomorrow, but we have two teams that really want to bring home the cup.”
Sunday is the second-ever meeting between the Mountaineers and the Trojans (18-4-2, 8-2-1 Pac-12). In the first contest, the No. 9-ranked Trojans defeated the No. 12 Mountaineers, 1-0, on Nov. 30, 2007, in front of 3,000+ fans at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium. The match was WVU’s first appearance in the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals. USC went on to win its first and only NCAA title.
The Mountaineers carry a 17-match unbeaten streak into Sunday’s championship. The squad’s win total is a program single-season record and matches the Big 12 record.
WVU earned its spot in the final with a 1-0 win against No. 2-seed North Carolina on Dec. 2, at Avaya Stadium. A College Cup newcomer, the Mountaineers are only the third team this century to walk away from its semifinal debut victoriously.
The Mountaineer defense, anchored by four-time NSCAA All-American Kadeisha Buchanan, denied the Tar Heel attack a shot on-goal, and UNC became the third team this season to not earn a clean look at the net. WVU’s shutout was its 18th of the year, the best total nationally and a program single-season record. The mark also matches the Big 12 record.
Junior forward Michaela Abam tallied the game-winner in the 74th minute, her team-best fifth game-winner of the season. Named to the NSCAA All-America Second Team Friday morning, Abam paces the Mountaineers with 12 goals, the second straight season she has tallied a dozen scores. She also shows a team-best 33 points (12 G, 9 A).
Since missing out on the 2013 NCAA Tournament, USC has qualified for the last three fields. The Trojans have advanced to the NCAA College Cup Final only once and walked away with the 2007 National Championship.
The Trojans earned their spot in the final with a 1-0 win over No. 5-ranked and second-seeded Georgetown on Dec. 2. Senior forward Katie Johnson scored the game-winner in the 60th minute, her fourth of the season. The Hoyas earned a 9-6 edge in shots. Sammy Jo Prudhomme made two saves for the Trojans.
Junior forward Alex Anthony paces USC with 25 points (10 G, 5 A). Prudhomme has started all 24 matches between the posts and shows a .410 GAA. She’s made 98 saves and earned credit for 15 of the team’s 16 clean sheets.
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