Pac-12 women’s soccer boasts rivalry matchups after Stanford clinches 2019 league crown

SAN FRANCISCO — STANFORD was crowned the 2019 Pac-12 Champion last week as the Cardinal claimed its unprecedented fifth-consecutive outright Conference title last week with a victory over ASU (3-0). Two Pac-12 teams will battle for second place this week as the Conference prepares for rivalry matchups to mark the last week of league play.

Top-25 foes No. 9 USC (7-3-0, 21 pts) and No. 14 UCLA (7-3-0, 21 pts) will face off for second place Conference standings this week at Wallis Annenberg Stadium in Los Angeles (Friday, Nov. 8, 6 p.m. PT, P12N). Both schools are coming off of undefeated road trips topping both Oregon schools.

CALIFORNIA (5-2-3, 18 pts) will compete in one of its toughest matches this season as the Golden Bears head to No. 2 Stanford (10-0-0, 30 pts) to take on the Conference champs. Cal went 2-0 last week, defeating both ARIZONA (3-0) and ARIZONA STATE (2-1). WASHINGTON (6-4-0, 18 pts) will also be challenged this week hosting No. 24 WASHINGTON STATE. The Cougs went undefeated last week topping COLORADO (4-0) for the first time since 2015 and UTAH (4-1).

The remaining Pac-12 matchups will feature rivals OREGON (1-7-2, 5 Pts.) and OREGON STATE (2-6-2, 8 pts), Colorado (3-5-2, 11 pts) and Utah (2-5-3, 9 pts), and Arizona (4-5-1, 13 pts) and Arizona State (0-8-2, 2 pts).

IN THE RANKINGS:
• Four Pac-12 women’s soccer teams are ranked in this week’s United Soccer Coaches top 25.
• Stanford maintains its No. 2 spot for the seventh week in a row after extending its perfect league record (10-0-0) and claiming the 2019 Pac-12 crown, the unprecedented fifth-striaght for the Cardinal.
• USC jumps up two spots to No. 9 this week after two road shutouts over Oregon (1-0) and Oregon State (1-0). 
• Despite dropping both Oregon State (4-0) and Oregon (1-0), UCLA moves down one spot to No. 14 this week.
• Washington State joins the rankings for the ninth time this season at No. 24 after defeating Utah (4-1) and Colorado (4-1) last week.

MAC HERMANN WATCH LIST:
• Morgan Weaver was named Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week after scoring six of the Cougars eight goals on the weekend. Weaver netted all four goals in WSU’s victory over Colorado (4-1), tied for tenth-most in a single match in Conference history, and for WSU’s single-game scoring record. She also earned her 39th career goal. good for third-all-time in program history.
• Stanford’s Catarina Macario continues her reign on top as her total goals (23), goals per game (1.28), assists (16), assists per game, points (62), points per game (3.44), and shots per game (5.83) lead the nation. The junior forward earned nine points last week after scoring three goals and notching two assists to help defeat ASU (3-0) and Arizona (6-2) and earn the Cardinal its fifth Conference title
• UCLA’s Lucy Parker earned her second defensive player of the week award this season after helping the Bruins top Oregon State (4-0) and Oregon (1-0). Parker netted the game-winning goal against the Ducks to mark UCLA’s fifth road win of the season. She also led a defensive line that limited OSU to just nine shots and the Oregon to just four, two on target.
• Nine Pac-12 student-athletes were named to the 2019 MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List. This is the most prestigious individual award in college soccer and is presented annually to the most outstanding male and female players of the year. The watch list is headlined by 2018 MAC Hermann Trophy winner Catarina Macario of Stanford. The Cardinal is further represented by sophomore forward Sophia Smith. The Bruins lead the Conference with three student-athletes on the list: 2018 semifinalist Ashley Sanchez, 2017 finalist Jessie Fleming, and junior defender Lucy Parker. Adding to the list of honorees are USC’s Kaylie Collins and Savannah DeMelo, Colorado’s Taylor Kornieck, and Washington State’s Morgan Weaver.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK:
• Washington State’s Morgan Weaver scored six of the Cougars' eight goals on the weekend leading WSU to a perfect 2-0 record, defeating Utah (4-1) and Colorado (4-1). The senior forward netted four tallies against Colorado, tied for Washington State’s single-game scoring record, and the most since 1992. Weaver was named offensive player of the week for the first time this season (fourth time in her career) and earns Washington State’s 30th all-time.
• UCLA’s Lucy Parker led the Bruins defense to a pair of shutout victories on the road at Oregon State (4-0) and Oregon (1-0). Parker scored the game-winning goal in the Bruins' win over the Ducks, her second of the season. She collects her second defensive player of the week award this season, and UCLA’s 83rd all-time weekly nod.
• California goalkeeper Angelina Anderson helped California complete an undefeated home stand topping Arizona (3-0) and Arizona State (2-1). In Cal’s match against the Wildcats saw Anderson notch her ninth-solo shutout of the season, tied for California’s freshman clean-sheet record previously set by Noreen Paris in 1985. She also recorded 10 saves against Arizona, the most in a single game by a California keeper since 2017 and the second-most by any Pac-12 goalie this season. With her fourth goalkeeper of the week honor this season, the freshman keeper now leads the conference in overall save percentage (.868), ranks second in goals against average (0.52), and is fourth in total saves (66).

NON-CONFERENCE NOTABLES:
• Pac-12 women’s soccer boasted the highest winning percentage for the last four weeks of non-conference play (.875, .857, .811), finishing with a combined record of 76-14-9 with a .813 percentage, including 6-3 against ranked sides.
• Oregon State and USC finished their non-conference slates undefeated, two of just seven Division I teams to not record a loss in non-conference play.
• The league continues to post impressive offensive results as they currently have the third-most assists (367), fourth-most goals (400), and third-most shots (3,314) in the country.

2018 IN REVIEW
• Last season, five Pac-12 teams earned a trip to the NCAA Tournament. Stanford entered the tournament as the No. 1 seed, UCLA at No. 2, and USC at No. 4, while Washington State and ARIZONA clinched at-large bids. The Conference posted an impressive postseason run, as all Pac-12 squads went undefeated in the first round for the first time since 2007. The Cardinal, the Bruins, and the Trojans landed spots in the third round, marking the third-straight year three Conference teams were in the round of 16.

PAC-12 WOMEN’S SOCCER BROADCAST
• 70 women’s soccer contests will be televised on Pac-12 Networks throughout the season. All six Conference matchups will be televised this week starting with Colorado at Utah (6 p.m. PT, P12M) and Oregon at Oregon State (7 p.m. PT, P12O) on Friday, Nov. 7, followed by Arizona State at Arizona (6 p.m. PT, P12A), USC at UCLA (6 p.m. PT, P12LA), California at Stanford (7 p.m. PT, P12BA), Washington State at Washington (7 p.m. PT, P12W) on Friday, Nov. 8.

CONFERENCE STANDINGS 

UPCOMING SCHEDULE (Times local to site)

P12N/P12A/P12BA/P12LA/P12M/P12O/P12W - Indicates live broadcast on Pac-12 Network.
 

PAC-12 PLAYER OF THE WEEK

THIS WEEK: 
Offensive: Morgan Weaver, WSU
Defensive: Lucy Parker, UCLA
Goalkeeper: Angelina Anderson, CAL

ALSO NOMINATED:
Offensive: Jill Aguilera, ARIZ; Abi Kim, CAL; Taylor Kornieck, COLO; Catarina Macario, STAN; Chloe Castaneda, UCLA; Penelope Hocking, USC.
Defensive: Samantha Falasco, ARIZ; Emily Smith, CAL; Hannah Sharts, COLO; Alyssa Hinojosa, ORE; Naomi Girma, Stanford; Ashleigh Plumptre, USC; Brianna Alger, WSU.
Goalkeeper: Hope Hisey, ARIZ; Jalen Tompkins, COLO; Katelyn Carter, ORE; Lauren Rood, STAN; Teagan Micah, UCLA; Kaylie Collins, USC.

2019 WOMEN'S SOCCER PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

NATIONAL HONORS

MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List
Taylor Kornieck, Colorado; Caterina Macario, Stanford; Sophia Smith, Stanford; Jessie Fleming, UCLA; Lucky Parker, UCLA; Ashley Sanchez, UCLA; Kaylie Collins, USC; Savannah DeMelo, USC; Morgan Weaver, Washington State

IN THE PRESEASON

Pac-12 Preseason Poll | NCAA Preseason Poll | MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List