NCAA Tourney 1st Round: Cougars to face Utah in Provo

PROVO -- The Division I Women's Soccer Committee announced on ESPNEWS today that BYU is one of 16 regional sites to host the first and second round of the 2002 NCAA Women's College Cup. BYU will face Utah on Thursday, Nov. 14 at South Field in Provo in the first round of the 2002 NCAA Women's College Cup. Kick off for that game is set for 7 p.m.

Also Thursday, Idaho State will face No. 8-seed Portland in the earlier regional game at 4:30 p.m. The winners of the two Thursday games will meet each other in Provo on Saturday in the second round of the College Cup at noon on South Field.

The Cougars have faced each of the teams coming to Provo already this season, beating then No. 2 Portland 2-1, Utah 2-1 and losing to Idaho State, 2-0.

The Cougars, fresh off a 14-3 scoring romp through the MWC Tournament, are making their sixth-straight appearance in the NCAA post-season tournament. To view the entire tournament bracket, go to www.ncaasports.com.

Just nine days ago, the Cougars defeated the Utes 2-1 in Salt Lake in the regular-season finale for the two teams, improving its all-time record against Utah to a perfect 11-0. Utah then lost in the MWC seminfinals to New Mexico while BYU won its fourth-straight tourney title with a 5-1 win over the Lobos.

Tickets may only be purchased at the South Field gate. Prices for the NCAA tournament games are $7 general admission, $3 for seniors and students with ID, and $1 for children under age five.

BYU's NCAA History

--Last year, BYU defeated Kansas 1-0 in first-round action before falling 3-0 to No. 10 Nebraska in Lincoln, Neb.

--This is BYU's sixth-consecutive visit to the NCAA Women's Soccer Championships. In the previous five appearances BYU has advanced into the "Sweet Sixteen" twice.

--The 2000 season was the first time the Cougars got a first round bye and the fourth time they encountered the Santa Clara Broncos, this time in Provo. In second round action, BYU hosted Stanford on Nov. 11, defeating them 5-0 before the Cougars-Broncos Nov. 18 showdown. Just 4:47 into the game, BYU scored for the first time ever on Santa Clara. The Broncos tied up the score in the 55th minute of the game. The rest of the game was scoreless, sending the game into overtime. In the 101st minute, the Broncos' Megan Horvath scored on a breakaway for the 2-1 OT victory.

--During the 1999 season , BYU got its third-straight invite, hosting a first round game against California where the Cougars picked up a 2-0 win. Then it was once again to Santa Clara for a third meeting against the Broncos, who were ranked number one in the country. Santa Clara defeated BYU 2-0 in that matchup.

--The Cougars had their best showing to date in 1998, finishing in the "Sweet Sixteen." They got there after a 6-1 victory against Stanford in Provo and a 2-0 shutout over UCLA in Los Angeles. In the round of 16, BYU once again met Santa Clara on their home field, where the Broncos picked up a 3-0 win to end the Cougars run at the title.

--In 1997, BYU made its first NCAA post-season appearance, losing 1-0 in the first round to Santa Clara in Santa Clara, Calif.

BYU's OVERALL RECORD IN THE NCAAs
Year		Team Record	 NCAA
1997	   19-4-0		   0-1
1998	   21-4-0		   2-1
1999	   21-4-0		   1-1
2000	   19-3-1		   2-1
2001    14-7-1     1-1
Overall Record:	   5-5