The four contests were appropriately tight the weekend the College Cup tournament field was finalized. The biggest difference in victory was two goals. Even that match felt closer than the scoreline suggested. UCLA needed him twice and the title favorites were pushed all the way to the end. And to top it all off, four teams secured the spot the following weekend in Cary, North Carolina. Here are the details of each game.
Sophia Cook’s OT Strike Helps UCLA Beat Virginia, 2-1
The ball fell gently to Sophia Cooke and was paced enough to fall quietly to the edge of the box in extra time and be hit cleanly. But the UCLA forward still had a lot of work to do. As her two defenders of Billignoa charged towards her, the freshman stroked the ball on the outside of her right boot with enough turn and pace to pass the goalkeeper. It was a great goal and a deserved winner for a Bruins team that showed more quality in Saturday night’s defining moment. UCLA was an out shot, sometimes going through an out in 110 minutes of play. However, they made the most of the chance and scored her two eloquent goals to seal her 2–1 victory. However, Virginia was not without a fight. The Cavaliers didn’t get their best until late in the second half when Alexa Spanstra dived on the wing and Hayley Hopkins harassed a defender in midfield. Their goal was well deserved, with Hopkins nodding home from Leah Godfrey’s corner. They looked for a second in the final minutes of regulation, but it didn’t happen. Ultimately, the game needed quality moments to work things out.
North Carolina sees off Notre Dame, 2-0
The first to react was Talia Delaperta. The North Carolina midfielder had a shot off an opposing defender and the ball grounded between his three players. And de la Perta popped out first, slamming a loose ball into the roof of the net. Her goal put the distance between UNC and Notre Dame in the NCAA quarterfinal contest and gave the Tar Heels a breathtaking 2-0 lead, one of the few in an otherwise tense contest. It was her one of the defining moments. North Carolina took her two goals well, first loose her ball and then on a rebound she scored two goals. Notre Dame tested Emmy Allen with pepper for shots on both sides of halftime and provided several attacking moments on home soil. But Tarr his heels calmly managed the game, keeping Notre Dame’s usual threat, the dynamic Corbin his Albert within arm’s reach. With the attacking midfielder disabled, the Irish had little place to turn. So all North Carolina needed was a few lucky bounces.
Alabama wins over Duke, 3-2 in overtime thriller
It was Reyna Reyes’ first touch that set things up. The Alabama midfielder was able to catch a loose ball in the box and hit it with her right foot. I shifted my weight to the left and then slotted home under pressure. It was a moment of composure that ended up being the difference between Alabama and Duke in their clash in the last eight of the NCAA Tournament. Alabama dominated most of the game and in the 75th minute he appeared to be leading 2–0. But Michelle Cooper struck out twice in quick succession for the Blue Devils to level the game at 2-2 in 10 minutes. Finally found it in overtime thanks to you. The win qualified Alabama for the first-ever College Cup.
Second-half goal puts Florida out of resilient Arkansas 1-0
Jenna Nicewonger has served the same corner all season. But then at the apex the ball bends, sinks and seeks the back side of the net. That serve has contributed to some of the Florida midfielder’s many assists this year, and on Saturday night it worked again, fending off an Arkansas defender to his 1-0 win for the Seminoles. scored the only goal of With Jody Brown and Onnie Echezini threatening throughout with neat runs and angled shots, they probably should have done more. But the Arkansas defense kept it in the game. I was. Nice Wonger’s deflected delivery was a given, but an outlier in an otherwise resilient defensive show. And Arkansas’ rear his guard his action set things up in a tense final minute as the Razorbacks sought a winner. But in those tricky moments, Florida State’s depth was shown, and it was the defense before Cristina Roque made two key saves that distracted the offense and sent the Seminoles in. Much was made in the preseason about new head coach Brian Penske’s ability to lead an unfamiliar team. Against Arkansas, he showed exactly why he’s the right person for the job.
