Broncos tame Bruins in 3-0 victory

By Mike Kaufmann

The women's soccer team dispelled the notion that they weren't among the nation's elite when they defeated visiting UCLA last Friday by a wide three-goal margin.

The Broncos, ranked fifth at the time, beat the Bruins, ranked third, behind the offensive firepower of Meagan Snell. Snell scored two of her team's leading seven goals in the game.

The Broncos took control of the game early on by scoring first.

"That early goal combined with a large, supportive crowd gave us the momentum," said head coach Jerry Smith. "And we carried that momentum to a second and then a third goal and an eventual win."

The Bronco defense stopped the Bruin attack cold. The Santa Clara defense, along with goalkeeper Meagan McCray, shutout a Bruins team that had scored in all of its previous games.

"Defensively we were outstanding, it was a good overall team effort," said Smith. "The back four definitely stepped up, though."

McCray only had to make two saves in what was otherwise a quiet night for the Bronco keeper. Kiki Bosio recorded her first collegiate goal in the 27th minute that gave the Broncos a 2-0 lead.

Two days later, the Broncos squared off against Cal-State Fullerton and won 2-0. In that match, outside back Marian Dalmy scored twice, once on an assist from Bosio and once on a penalty kick.

Dalmy credited the momentum from Friday's emotional victory as one reason for the win.

"This weekend was huge," said Dalmy. "To be able to carry it on against Fullerton made it that much bigger." The Broncos could have easily scored more against Fullerton as they outshot the Titans 23-5. The victory was also the second consecutive shutout for McCray and the Bronco back line.

A day after the victory over Fullerton, Snell was named the West Coast Conference Co-Player of the Week. She received the award in part for being only the eighth player in Bronco history to score a goal in four consecutive matches.

It was the second time this season that Snell received the award.

"Meagan has scored some absolutely critical goals for our team," said Smith. "Having somebody that scores goals consistently is a big part of great teams."

Snell has been a pleasant surprise on the offensive side of the ball for the Broncos. Last season, Snell recorded five goals in 23 games but already has seven goals in just 10 games.

The Broncos have three games left in their five-game homestand, including a match against San Jose State in the rival series.

The Broncos are currently ranked third in the nation.

Contact Mike Kaufmann at (408) 551-1918 or mlkaufmann@scu.edu.