University Southern California Trojans
Women's Soccer Visits UCLA, Looks For Pac-10 Crown
November 02, 1999 | Women's Soccer
Nov. 2, 1999
LOS ANGELES - The No. 7 USC women's soccer team (14-4 overall, 7-1 in the Pacific-10 Conference for first place), under coach Jim Millinder and led by two-time All-Americans Isabelle Harvey and Kim Clark, can clinch its second straight conference title this weekend. The Women of Troy close out the regular season at crosstown rival and No. 17 UCLA (13-4-1, 5-2-1) on Sunday (Nov. 7) at 10:30 a.m. A victory over the Bruins would give USC at least a share of the title. Stanford (6-1) sits one-half game back of USC and plays two matches at home against the Washington schools this weekend.
RANKINGS - USC is ranked No. 7 by Soccer America and Soccer Buzz (matching USC's highest ranking ever), No. 8 by Soccer Times and No. 11 by the NSCAA ... UCLA is ranked No. 17 by Soccer Times, No. 18 by Soccer Buzz and No. 20 by Soccer America and the NSCAA.
NEWS & NOTES - Isabelle Harvey, who already set the school career record for points earlier this season (she now has 112), broke the record for career goals over the weekend (she now has 40) ... Harvey was named Pac-10 Player of the Week on Monday after getting three goals and an assist against the Oregon schools ... USC set a school single-season record against Oregon State with its ninth shutout of the season ... The Women of Troy play perhaps the toughest schedule in the country, including matches against defending NCAA champion Florida and 15-time national champion North Carolina, as well as eight other teams that made the 1998 NCAA Tournament (all four of USC's losses are to teams currently ranked in the Soccer America Top 20) ... Three USC players participated in the 1999 Women's World Cup: Harvey (Canada), Susie Mora (Mexico) and Barbara Almaraz (Mexico).
UCLA - The Bruins (13-4-1, 5-2-1) are coming off a 2-1 loss at Oregon and are currently fourth in the Pac-10. Three players have surpassed the 20-point scoring mark: freshman forward Jessica Winton (11 goals, four assists, 26 points), junior forward Tracey Milburn (nine goals, four assists, 22 points) and sophomore forward Staci Duncan (nine goals, three assists, 21 points). USC and UCLA share common losses to top 10 teams North Carolina, Florida and Stanford. UCLA has outscored its opponents, 47-24. UCLA leads the all-time series with USC, 6-2, though the Women of Troy have won two of the last three. However, USC has yet to win in Westwood and is 0-4 there.
NCAA TOURNAMENT ANNOUNCEMENT - USC is expected to earn its second straight NCAA Tournament berth when the 48-team field is announced this weekend. The brackets will be released on Sunday (Nov. 7) at 7 p.m. The selection show will be aired by Empire Sports and the Sunshine Network.
LAST WEEKEND - USC moved back into first place in the Pac-10 with a road sweep of the Oregon schools. On Friday (Oct. 29), the Women of Troy beat Oregon, 3-1, as Isabelle Harvey scored twice and Brittany Savelkoul scored once. On Sunday (Oct. 31), USC blanked Oregon State, 3-0, to set a school record with its ninth shutout of the season. Harvey had a goal and an assist and Andrea Warner and Kim Clark scored the other goals.
PAC-10 STATS - USC is third in the conference in team points (127) and second in team goalkeeping (1.00 goals-against average) ... Kim Clark and Isabelle Harvey rank 1-2 in assists with nine and eight, respectively ... Harvey is second in points with 30 and tied for second in goals with 11 ... Shaelyn Fernandes is second in goals-against average (1.23) and ninth in saves (48).
ISABELLE HARVEY - Junior midfielder/forward Isabelle Harvey (Cap-Rouge, Quebec, Canada) had an outstanding performance in the 1999 Women's World Cup for Canada and is one of the nation's top collegiate players. A two-time All-American and the 1998 Pac-10 Co-Player of the Year, Harvey ranks first in goals (40), points (112) and game-winning goals (18) and second in assists (32) in USC history. In 1999, she has 30 points on 11 goals (both are team highs) and eight assists. Isabelle has scored a point in 13 straight conference matches dating back to last season, and in her career, she has scored a point in 18 of 24 conference matches. She was named Pac-10 Player of the Week after getting a total of three goals and one assist against the Oregon schools. She scored two goals against both Maryland and Oregon, had a goal and an assist against both Arizona and Oregon State, and two assists against Washington State. Her goal against Oregon State was the 40th of her career, setting a new school record. Her penalty-kick goal against Fresno State pushed her into the lead as USC's all-time top point scorer. She had two assists against Washington State, the first of which allowed her to become the first USC player ever to score 100 points in a career. Harvey starts at midfielder but she also can be pushed up to forward. She had eight goals and a Pac-10-high 12 assists in 1998.
KIM CLARK - Another player who ranks among the best in the nation, senior midfielder/forward Kim Clark (Cupertino/Monta Vista HS) is a two-time All-American third teamer who ranks first in USC history in assists (36), second in points (102) and third in goals (33). This season, she has 17 points on four goals and a team-high nine assists. She had a goal and an assist against California and collected two assists against both Maryland and Washington State. She was named to the Soccer America Team of the Week for scoring the game-winner against then-No. 15 Duke. Her assist against Stanford was the 100th point of her career. The catalyst for USC's offense, Clark starts at midfielder. Clark suffered a broken leg in a match against UCLA last season and missed the final four matches of the season, including USC's postseason run. She finished with 10 goals and six assists in 1998.
CHRISTINA KUSHNIR - The leader of USC's defense, senior sweeper Christina Kushnir (San Diego/Bishop's School) is having another strong season and should be in line for postseason honors. Kushnir, a dominating player in the air, also contributes on offense and has seven career goals. She has two assists in 1999. She was USC's representative on the four-person All-Tournament team at the Duke Adidas Classic.
KATIE TICEHURST - Junior defensive midfielder Katie Ticehurst (Los Alamitos/Mater Dei HS) offers a potent mix of offensive and defensive prowess and is on her way to becoming a premier player. She has three goals and one assist for seven points in 1999. All three of her goals have come >from at least 30 yards out. She scored a spectacular goal against then-No. 4 Florida, striking the ball from about 30 yards out after a long run. She had a goal and an assist against Arizona.
ALI FENNELL - A freshman who has added a great dose of speed and ability to the Women of Troy, midfielder Ali Fennell (Santa Ana/Mater Dei HS) has been tremendous early in her career. She is currently third on the team with 16 points (six goals and four assists). Among her early highlights, she has been named a two-time Pac-10 Player of the Week (Sept. 13 and 20) and to the Soccer America Team of the Week twice. She received the first awards after scoring the game-winner against then-No. 8 UConn and assisting on the game-winner against then-No. 12 Portland. After scoring both goals in a 2-1 win over then-No. 8 BYU, she received the second set of honors.
DEFENDERS - In addition to Kushnir, USC has four outstanding defenders that rotate between the other two spots. Junior Megan Orach (Huntington Beach/Marina HS), a forward her first two seasons, has made a terrific adjustment to defending and has started all 18 matches. She has one goal and one assist in 1999. Junior Susie Mora (Mission Viejo/Santa Margarita HS), a starter for Mexico in the 1999 Women's World Cup, has started 15 times. Sophomore Erin Reed (Alamo/San Ramon Valley HS) has started six times and sophomore Liane Nakano (Fountain Valley/Fountain Valley HS) is a key reserve.
GOALKEEPERS - USC has received steady play from its two goalkeepers, who have shared time. Sophomore Shaelyn Fernandes (San Jose/Presentation HS) is 7-4 as a starter and has a 1.228 goals-against average. Freshman Lauren Arase (La Canada/La Canada HS), a member of the U.S. Under-18 National Team pool, is 7-0 as a starter and has a 0.631 goals-against average. Fernandes has four shutouts, Arase has two and the duo has shared on three others.
FORWARDS - Five players are in the mix at the forward position and each has had a great deal of success. Sophomore Christy Callier (San Diego/University City HS) and senior Kaylee Whitfield (Santa Ana/El Modena HS) have been the starters as of late. Callier has three goals and one assist, including two goals against Arizona. Whitfield has two goals and three assists, with both goals coming against Washington State. Whitfield knows about coming back from adversity, having been hit by lightning when she was 9 years old (her heart stopped beating for a minute), then returning in 1999 after surgeries to torn ligaments in both knees last year. Reserves include sophomore Brittany Savelkoul (Seal Beach/Los Alamitos HS) and freshmen Jackie Fodor (Winnetka/Chatsworth HS) and Jennifer Prigmore (Norman, OK/Norman North HS). Savelkoul has two goals and one assist. Fodor has three goals and two assists, including two goals against UC Irvine. Prigmore, USC's "Super-Sub", has scored 14 points (six goals and two assists) despite having only started one match. She had two goals against Montana and a goal and an assist against UC Irvine.
LINEUP - The Women of Troy have only three seniors - midfielder Kim Clark, defender Christina Kushnir and forward Kaylee Whitfield - and all are starters. One freshman, midfielder Ali Fennell, has earned a permanent starting job, while four other freshmen have started at least once (goalkeeper Lauren Arase, forward Jackie Fodor, midfielder Laura Foster and forward Jennifer Prigmore). USC has started the same lineup in seven of eight conference matches.
MISCELLANEOUS - Ali Fennell is the only women's soccer player to ever earn back-to-back Pac-10 Player of the Week honors ... The Women of Troy have scored in the first 10 minutes of the match in six of eight conference games ... USC posted shutouts in its first two matches of the season for the first time in school history ... USC posted three straight shutouts (against Montana, Arizona and Arizona State) to set a school record (overall, USC did not surrender a goal in 398 minutes of play) ... Jennifer Prigmore is the third Trojan freshman to score goals in each of her first two matches (Erin Bailey in 1994 and Courtney Barham in 1995 were the others) ... USC won back-to-back matches against ranked teams for the first time ever against Portland and UConn (the streak went to four with wins over BYU and Duke) ... USC was outshot in seven straight matches (but went 4-3 in those matches) before outshooting Montana ... USC's all-time record at the Coliseum is 25-2-2 (.897).
QUICK STATS - USC is 12-1 when it scores first ... USC is 2-3 when the opponent scores first ... USC is 10-0 when leading at halftime ... USC is 1-3 when trailing at halftime ... USC is 3-1 when tied at halftime ... USC is 9-0 when it outshoots the opponent ... USC is 4-4 when it is outshot ... USC is 1-0 when shots are equal.
HEAD COACH JIM MILLINDER - Now in his fourth season as USC's head coach, Jim Millinder has put USC on the verge of becoming a national power. He has a four-year record of 59-19-2 (.750) with USC and a six-year overall mark of 67-46-6 (.588). A former U.S. National Team member, Millinder was named the 1997 West Region Coach of the Year and the 1996 and 1998 Pac-10 Coach of the Year.
LAST SEASON - In 1998, the Women of Troy went 14-7-1 overall, earned their first-ever Pacific-10 Conference championship (tying for first at 7-2 with California and UCLA but beating both to win the tiebreaker) and made it to their first-ever NCAA Tournament (where they beat Washington in the first round but lost to San Diego State in three overtimes in the second).
