June 11, 2010
SAN DIEGO - San Diego State women's soccer head coach Mike Friesen announced his team's 2010 schedule on Friday. Highlighting the slate are six teams that advanced to the NCAA Tournament a year ago, including 21-time and defending national champion North Carolina, which will make the trek out west to play at SDSU Sports Deck on Sunday, Sept. 12, at 1:30 p.m. PT.
The Aztecs are coming off a spring season in which they did not lose a game, shut out three opponents and outscored their opposition, 8-2. In the spring finale vs. UCLA, SDSU held a 1-0 lead for nearly 60 minutes, had several quality chances and limited the Bruins' offensive opportunities before ultimately settling for the 1-1 tie. In 29 overall matches during the 2009-10 season, the Mountain West Conference tournament champions only lost four times and will look to carry that momentum into the 2010 campaign.
San Diego State will open its schedule with five consecutive road games beginning Aug. 14 at Long Beach State. The following week will see the Aztecs travel to Northern California for games against Santa Clara (Aug. 20) and Sacramento State (Aug. 22). A year ago, the Broncos earned a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament, advanced to the Sweet 16 and finished No. 10 in the final NSCAA poll and No. 12 in the final RPI.
The season-opening road trip will conclude in the Sunshine State when SDSU is scheduled to take on a pair of teams that made it to the second round of last year's NCAA Tournament. Central Florida, a No. 3 seed in the 2009 draw, will play host to the Aztecs on Aug. 27. The Knights were the 2009 Conference USA regular season champions, were ranked as high as No. 8 last season and finished the campaign ranked No. 17 and No. 11 in the NSCAA and RPI, respectively. Florida, meanwhile, will welcome the Aztecs to Gainesville on Aug. 29. The Gators earned a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament after winning the SEC regular season title and ended the year ranked No. 15 in the NSCAA poll and No. 14 in the RPI.
After five road dates, San Diego State returns to Montezuma Mesa for four consecutive games at SDSU Sports Deck. The Aztecs will play host to Detroit in their home opener on Sept. 3, before rolling out the welcome mat for WAC runner-up Utah State on Sept. 5. Next up will be San Jose State, the WAC regular season champs, on Sept. 10, and then the Tar Heels on Sept. 12. The ACC tournament champions will carry impressive credentials to the College Area as the two-time defending national champions finished the season ranked No. 1 in both the NSCAA poll and RPI and have won 20 titles in the 28-year history of the NCAA Tournament.
Following its longest homestand of the season, SDSU will play two games at the Oregon State Tournament in Corvallis. The Aztecs are set to take on Oregon on Sept. 17, before clashing with the Beavers on Sept. 19. Last year, SDSU and OSU played to a 1-1 tie in San Diego and Oregon State advanced to the Sweet 16 after earning an at-large berth into the NCAA Tournament. The Beavers were ranked No. 21 in the NSCAA poll and were 19th in the final RPI.
Prior to the start of Mountain West action, the Aztecs will return to SDSU Sports Deck and play host to a pair of Big West schools in Cal State Fullerton and Cal Poly. The Titans will make the drive from Orange County to play San Diego State on Sept. 24, while the Mustangs and Big West Tournament finalists will travel from the central coast for a Sept. 26 showdown.
SDSU will open its league slate on Oct. 1 when TCU comes to town and will then travel to Albuquerque to play New Mexico on Oct. 9. Air Force and Wyoming will visit the Aztecs on Oct. 14 and Oct. 16, respectively, before San Diego State hits the road for a pair of pivotal games in the Beehive State.
The Scarlet and Black will travel to Salt Lake City for an Oct. 21 game against Utah. A year ago, the Aztecs tied the Utes in the regular season and needed two overtime sessions in the semifinals of the MWC Tournament before coming away with the 2-1 victory. Then on Oct. 23, San Diego State will revisit the site where it won its first MWC Tournament crown when it takes on BYU at South Soccer Stadium. In 2009, the Aztecs and Cougars played even in the regular season and met again in the MWC final where SDSU emerged with the championship after its 1-0 road win.
San Diego State will wrap up its regular season schedule at home against UNLV on Oct. 29. Five days later on Nov. 3, the MWC Championship will commence at SDSU Sports Deck. The event will mark the first time it has stepped foot in county limits since 1999, when it was held at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, Calif. The quarterfinals and semifinals will be held on Nov. 3-4, respectively, with the championship game slated for Nov. 6.
The Aztecs are coming off one of their most successful seasons in school history after winning the MWC Tournament crown and advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. SDSU finished the year with a record of 15-4-5 (5-0-2 MWC), which included a 16-game unbeaten run. The 15 victories were the program's most since 1999 and the NCAA appearance was the school's first since that same season. The first-round NCAA win, meanwhile, was SDSU's first postseason victory since 1998.
San Diego State ended the regular season ranked No. 16 in the Soccer America poll and had the 29th-best RPI in the nation. The Aztecs also finished No. 33 in the NSCAA poll and No. 37 in the Soccer Times poll.
In 2010, SDSU is scheduled to return seven starters and 13 letterwinners off last year's championship squad, including senior midfielder Cat Walker. The reigning MWC offensive player of the year and NSCAA all-Pacific Region second-team choice led the team in goals scored (11) and points (27). Also returning is senior goalkeeper Aubree Southwick (all-MWC second team), senior midfielder/forward Michaela DeJesus (MWC all-tournament team) and junior Megan McQueeny (all-MWC first team).