Oct. 12, 1997
Women's Soccer falls to 20th-Ranked USC
BERKELEY, Calif.--The California women's soccer team suffered its second consecutive one-goal loss to a ranked opponent, falling to the University of Southern California, 2-1, in a Pacific-10 Conference match at Witter Field Sunday afternoon. The loss dropped Cal to 5-6-1 (0-2, Pac-10) on the season.
USC (11-1-1, 1-0 Pac-10) got the scoring started nine minutes into the match when Carol Hatcher headed in a Kim Clark free kick past Cal's goalkeeper Maite Zabala for the early 1-0 lead. Only four minutes later tragedy struck Cal again as junior Ryan McManus was given a red card for taking down Courtney Barham on a breakaway just inside the penalty box. But Zabala came up huge on the penalty shot, stuffing Barham's attempt which was headed for the right corner of the goal. But due to the ejection of McManus, Cal was forced to play a player down for the game's final 75 minutes.
Zabala's save gave the Bears a renewed sense of confidence and it was difficult to tell that Cal was a player short. And when freshman Maresa Zanetti headed in a Courtney Carroll corner kick at the 64 minute mark of the second half for the equalizer, it looked as if the Bears might just pull off an upset of the nation's 20th-ranked team.
However the upset was not to be as the shorthanded Bears, who were constantly pushing the attack forward in the second stanza, allowed Barham to again slip the behind defense. This time Zabala, who made nine saves on the afternoon, could not come up another as Barham's shot found the left corner of the net for the game-winner.
Cal returns to action next Friday, Oct. 17, when they travel to Stanford to take on Cardinal. Last year, Cal knocked of Stanford, 1-0, in Berkeley. It was the first win for the Bears over the Cardinal since Cal's 5-0 victory in 1987.
USC 2, California 1
Scoring -- 1, USC, Carol Hatcher (Kim Clark), 9:00; 2, Cal, Maresa Zanneti (Courtney Carroll), 64:00; 3, USC, Courtney Barham (Carol Hatcher), 82:00.
Shots -- USC 21, Cal 13.
Saves -- Badagliacco (USC) 7, Zabala (Cal) 9.
Corner Kicks -- USC 3, Cal 2.
Fouls -- USC 16, Cal 9.
1 2 F
USC 1 1 2
California 0 1 1
Goal Assist(s) Time
Carol Hatcher Kim Clark 9:00
Maresa Zanneti Courtney Carroll 64:00
Courtney Barham Carol Hatcher 82:00
Records
California 5-6-1
North Carolina 11-1-1
