USC Women's Soccer Hosts UCLA for Crosstown Showdown at the Coliseum
THIS WEEK - The No. 19 USC women's soccer team hits the road for a pair of Pac-12 games, heading to Stanford on Friday and then Cal on Sunday.
GAME 12 - No. 19 USC (7-3-2, 6-3-1) vs. No. 3 UCLA (12-1-1, 9-1) - Friday, April 16, 4 p.m. PT (Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum) - Pac-12 Network
HOW TO FOLLOW - Friday's regular season finale will be televised live on the Pac-12 Network. Links for the broadcasts and live stats can be found on the women's soccer schedule page at USCTrojans.com. In-game updates will also be available on Twitter by following @USC_Wsoccer.
SOCIAL MEDIA - Keep up with everything USC women's soccer this year by following the Trojans on all of their social media platforms. You can follow @USCWsoccer on Instagram and @USC_Wsoccer on Twitter, and like USC Women's Soccer on Facebook.
LAST WEEK - The Trojans hit the road for games at Stanford and Cal, playing to a scoreless draw with the defending national champs Stanford, and then beating Cal 5-0. Croix Bethune scored a hat trick in the lopsided win at Cal.
BETHUNE'S HAT TRICK - Croix Bethune scored her first career hat trick against the Golden Bears on the road Sunday. The tree goals were actually the first of Bethune's career, as she missed her true freshman season to an ACL injury. The Trojan midfielder also recorded an assist in the game to finish with seven total points. She earned Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week honors for her efforts. It was the second hat trick of the year for a USC player, as Penelope Hocking also recorded one against Washington.
PERRYMAN'S WEEKLY HONOR - Lily Perryman earned Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week honors after the Trojans' two shutouts in the Bay Area last weekend. Perryman played the full 110 minutes in the shutout at Stanford and then a full 90 at Cal as the Trojans' holding midfielder. Perryman also scored her first career goal in the win over Cal and added an assist in the contest as well. She's the first Trojan to pick up defensive weekly honors this season.
HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE - The Trojans have been unbeatable at home so far this year, with a 6-0 record and five shutouts in the Coliseum this season. After a 4-3 overtime win over BYU to start the year, the Trojans have shut out their last five opponents at home, currently sitting on a 469 minute scoreless streak in the Coliseum.
DEFENSE SETTING THE TONE - The Trojan defense has been good away from home as well as of late, with USC recording five straight shutouts coming into Friday's matchup with UCLA. The Trojans have not allowed a goal since the last time they played the Bruins on March 18 in Westwood. USC is currently sitting on a 494 minute scoreless streak overall.
LAST TIME VS THE BRUINS - The Trojans and Bruins played once earlier this season, matching up in a non-conference contest in Westwood on March 18. The teams played to a 2-2 tie in the game, with Tara McKeown scoring both goals for the Trojans. USC outshot UCLA 20-12 in the game and had a 6-5 corner kick advantage.
MILESTONE VICTORY - USC Head Coach Keidane McAlpine picked up his 100th win as the Trojans' manager earlier this season against Washington. He is the second USC coach to reach 100 wins with USC and is the fastest to do so. McAlpine has an overall coaching record of 167-86-32 in 14 seasons. He is in his seventh season in charge at USC and has led the Trojans to at least 12 wins and a postseason appearance each year, including a national title in 2016. Jim Millinder tops USC's all-time wins list with 132 victories in 11 seasons at Troy, reaching the 100 win plateau in his 8th year with USC.
HOCKING NOTES - Penelope Hocking's steady climb up the USC career lists continues as she became just the second Trojan to reach the 40 goal plateau earlier this season with her hat trick against Washington. Hocking sits second on USC's all-time scoring list with her 41 goals, trailing only Isabelle Harvey (48 goals). Her 99 total points are third on USC's career list, and her 13 game-winning goals are second, also trailing Harvey (21 game-winners). Hocking's hat trick was the third of her career and sixth multi-goal game she has recorded for the Trojans. The junior forward was named the Pac-12's Offensive Player of the Week for her three-goal effort. She is tied for the Pac-12 lead with nine goals this season.
McKEOWN NOTES - Tara McKeown currently sits second on the team and sixth in the conference with six goals this year. She is sixth on USC's all-time scoring list with 29 career goals. The senior forward earned Pac-12 Player of the Week honors after scoring two goals in the Trojans' season-opening win over then-No. 10 BYU at home. She also posted a brace against UCLA in the teams' non-conference draw. McKeown was drafted eighth overall by the Washington Spirit in the 2021 NWSL Draft earlier this year.
COLLINS NOTES - Senior goalkeeper Kaylie Collins has started in goal each of the last five shutouts for USC, earning herself four solo-shutouts this season. She was named Pac-12 Goalkeeper of the Week earlier in the year after shutouts of Washington and Washington State at home. Collins' four solo-shutouts this season give her 27 for her career to put her second all-time in program history (Kristen Olsen - 29). She has not allowed a goal since March 18 at UCLA and has made 37 saves on the year. She was drafted in the fourth round of the 2021 NWSL Draft earlier this year by the Orlando Pride.
COLLEGIATE FIRSTS - Several Trojans recorded collegiate firsts over the last two weeks. Freshmen Angles Escobar and Katie Roditis each tallied their first collegiate goals against the Washington schools, and Escobar also picked up her first assists with two helpers against Washington. Alexa Gonzalez and Mary Shin also recorded their first collegiate caps in the Trojans' win over Washington. Croix Bethune and Lily Perryman scored their first collegiate goals against Cal on the road last weekend as well.
MODIFIED 2021 POSTSEASON - The NCAA Tournament is right around the corner and this year's tourney will be slightly different than previous years due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The field will be cut down to 48 teams this year and the entire field will meet in North Carolina to play in a bubble style tournament. Selections for the tournament will be announced on April 19, with the first round being held April 27-28.
2020-21 SEASON - Like all things, the 2020 women's soccer season was upended by the Covid-19 pandemic. The NCAA made the decision to move all fall championships to the spring back in August. The Trojans will play an abbreviated schedule this spring, with the NCAA College Cup being held May 13-17 in North Carolina. All players who compete this spring will not lose a season of eligibility and will still be able to play in the fall even if they are seniors.
KICKIN' IT IN THE COLI - The Trojans will play their 2020-21 spring season home games in the L.A. Memorial Coliseum. With the USC women's lacrosse team also playing on the Trojans typical home, McAlister Field, soccer's move to the Coliseum will reduce game conflicts, as well as wear and tear on the field.
MEDIA POLICY - Limited media members will be allowed to apply for credentials to USC women's soccer home games. Credentialed media members will only have access to a designated media area, and no in-person interviews will be allowed. All postgame and weekly interviews will be conducted virtually and upon request. Please contact Jacob Breems (Breems@usc.edu) for more media information and to apply for credentials.
LAST YEAR - The Trojans made another NCAA Tournament run last year, coming up just short of the College Cup. USC finished the 2019 season 17-5-1 overall, ending their campaign in the quarterfinals of the NCAA tournament against national runners-up North Carolina. USC reached as high as No. 2 in the national rankings in 2019 and made their sixth straight postseason appearance.
MAC HERMANN WATCH - Three Trojans were named to the MAC Hermann Trophy watch list this year, with Tara McKeown, Penelope Hocking and Savannah DeMelo all on the 54 player list. McKeown was a semifinalist for college soccer's top award last year and DeMelo has been on the watch list each of the last three seasons. USC has had at least a semifinalist for the award three of the last four years.
NWSL DRAFT - Two NWSL Drafts have passed since the Trojans last played a game and four USC players have been selected. Following the 2019 campaign, Natalie Jacobs was selected by the Washington Spirit with the 13th overall selection, and Julia Bingham was taken by the Chicago Red Stars 15th overall. Both went on to play for their respective teams the following season. This year's NWSL draft was unique in that selected players are still eligible to compete in both the spring and fall of 2021, if they choose. Tara McKeown was taken eight overall by the Spirit and Kaylie Collins was selected in the fourth round by the Orlando Pride. Both McKeown and Collins will play with the Trojans this spring.
TROJANS IN THE NWSL - With a new NWSL season kicking off recently, eight different USC alums are currently playing in the league.
Katie Johnson - Chicago Red Stars
Ally Prisock - Houston Dash
Ashley Nick - Kansas City
Amy Rodriguez - Kansas City
Mandy Freeman - NY/NJ Gotham FC
Elizabeth Eddy - NY/NJ Gotham FC
Leah Pruitt - OL Reign
Natalie Jacobs - Washington Spirit