POMONA, Calif. – On Sunday at Kellogg Field before a 2-0 win over Cal State L.A., the Cal Poly Pomona women's soccer team
celebrated the achievements of seven seniors.
The closing chapter on those senior careers is still unwritten though and there's a bit of unfinished business. You might call it the 'extra time' to an already memorable Broncos' season. It's the playoffs and it starts Friday.
The Broncos have advanced to the postseason for the first time since 2004, landing a spot in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Tournament to be held at Cal State Dominguez Hills in Carson this upcoming week.
CPP will take on Sonoma State Friday at 11 a.m. in a semifinal round matchup. The other semifinal matchup, to be kicked off at 1:30 p.m. that same day, will be between UC San Diego and Cal State Stanislaus. The winners of the two semifinal games will meet on Sunday in the championship at 12:30 p.m.
Sunday's win over the Golden Eagles extended the Broncos' program-record undefeated streak to 11 games. Since Sept. 23, CPP has gone 8-0-3 while outscoring opponents 25-6.
Although the Broncos had already secured a spot in the CCAA postseason after Friday's action, which included CPP's 2-2 draw with Cal State Dominguez Hills, Sunday's victory will certainly help as teams continue to jostle for position in the
NCAA regional rankings. The Broncos held the No. 5 spot in the most recent poll and on Nov. 5, the top six teams from the West Region will earn a berth into the D-II Tournament.
Before Sunday's game, CPP honored the academic and athletic accolades of
Brittany Aldrich,
Miko Elliott,
Angela Garcia,
Cindy Paez,
Veronica Ramos,
Sarah Semenero and
Rachel Ulanch. To view a video of the ceremony,
click here. It was only fitting that the Broncos' first goal of the afternoon featured key plays from three seniors.
After a scoreless first half, Ramos broke through with a goal in the 51st minute. Paez sent a free kick into the right corner, where Garcia tracked the ball down and sent a low cross into the box. Ramos sprinted through close to the near post and tapped a shot past the CSULA keeper to give the hosts a 1-0 edge.
In the 65th minute, CPP got an insurance score as Garcia and Ramos got involved once again. Garcia sent a pass to the right side for Ramos, who lined a hard shot that was blocked momentarily by a Golden Eagles' defender. Junior
Tatiana Cortes stepped in quickly though to tap in a shot for her first career score as a Bronco.
The CPP defense once again turned in a stellar performance Sunday with key minutes from
Kristin Mihara,
Hannah Leu,
Megan Kisslan and Semenero. Junior goalkeeper
Sarah Rohman collected five saves en route to recording her 14th career shutout.
CCAA Tournament Information
For on-campus directions at Cal State Dominguez Hills,
click here to access a PDF campus map. Fans are encouraged to park in Lot 6 across from Lacorte Hall. The closest campus entrance to Lot 6 is at: the
corner of E. Victoria St. & Tamcliff Ave., Carson, CA.
Daily parking permits cost $4. The CCAA Tournament games will be held at Toro Stadium and tickets will be sold starting at 10 a.m. Friday. General admission single-day tickets are $8 while students and seniors pay $5. Tickets for children under the age of 12 are priced at $2.
