UCLA women's soccer wins Pac-12 title in front of NCAA record crowd

The Battle of Los Angeles stepped it up to another level on Friday night, as more than 10,000 fans attended Memorial Coliseum to see the top-ranked UCLA women's soccer team defeat USC by a score of 2-0.

In the process, the Bruins wrapped up their second-straight Pac-12 Conference title in the season finale against their crosstown rivals. Making things better, it marked the biggest-ever NCAA Division I women's soccer crowd for a regular-season game with 10,128 fans. It broke the previous record of 8,527 set by UCLA and USC at the Memorial Coliseum in 2010.

Proud to be part of a game that is being watched by an NCAA record crowd of 10,128! #UCLAvsUSC #BattleforLA #CrosstownCup

— UCLA Women's Soccer (@UCLAWSoccer) November 8, 2014

Friday night's contest was a tight one, as both teams were held scoreless for nearly 80 minutes to start the match. But in the game's final stages, UCLA senior Kylie McCarthy punched through a pair of late goals to seal her team's fate as conference champs.

"The whole atmosphere was playoff-like," UCLA coach Amanda Cromwell said, "playing in the Coliseum under the lights against a great 'SC team that fought hard and made it really hard for us. It sets up well to go forward and try and win more games."

[Related: Complete Pac-12 women's soccer standings]

The defending national champion Bruins are in great position to earn a No. 1 seed heading into Monday's selection show for the NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Tournament (1:30 p.m. PT on NCAA.com).

The 64-team tournament is slated to start on Monday, Nov. 14, and the Bruins will surely be riding some momentum. UCLA is in the midst of a 41-game unbeaten streak and a school-record 667-minute shutout streak, behind a well-rounded team and star goalie Katelyn Rowland, who has tied an NCAA Division I record with 52 career shutouts.