Women's soccer needs two wins just to hope for a coveted NCAA bid.

Sure, the women's soccer team's motto of heart and hustle may sound like a tired cliché, but—with a possible postseason bid looming in the future—the Bulldogs really will need to put everything they've got into the final two games of the season. Even if the team does win its final matches, a trip to the NCAA tournament depends upon how other teams in the Northeast finish their seasons. Yet the players remain committed to pursuing two more victories in these last few weeks, even without the guarantee of a NCAA invite.

Women's Soccer

Record:8-6-1, 2-3 Ivy Recent Results: Won against Penn 4-2 on Sat., Oct. 21 Coming Up: Columbia on Sat., Oct. 28

The NCAA Women's Soccer Committee will formally announce which teams will qualify to compete for the title on Sun., Nov. 5. Tournament games officially commence on Wed., Nov. 8. Only the champions of the 21 Division I conferences, including the Ivy League, receive automatic bids to the championships. With a record of 8-6-1 (2-3 Ivy), Yale remains far behind the conference leaders Harvard (4-1 Ivy) and Princeton (4-1 Ivy). The Bulldogs must thus pin their hopes on an at-large bid.

The team battles the Columbia Lions (0-5 Ivy) in a crucial game on Fri., Oct. 27. Even the team's final game of the season against Brown (3-1 Ivy), which does not occur until Sun., Nov. 5, is of pressing concernin light of the need for back-to-back victories to be eligible for an NCAA bid.

"We have been working hard this past week, knowing that we need to win our next two Ivy League games," forward Chandra King, TD '03 said. "We need to step up and play on Friday against Columbia and then concentrate on Brown next."

Head Coach Rudy Meredith points out that as the season draws to a close, the team must still concentrate on playing well both on offense and defense against upcoming competitors. "Both [Columbia and Brown] will be tough games," he said. "If we focus on just playing well, we will end up with good results. We have confidence that we can score some goals, but we still need to focus on not giving up too many goals."

In preparation for these final Ivy League games, the players want to build on the success of their recent victory over the 4-2 Penn on Sat., Oct. 21. During that match, King ignited the attack with one goal scored and two assists. The team's high confidence level also provided the extra spark needed for victory; much of this confidence can be attributed to recent games against soccer powerhouses, UConn (W 1-0) and Notre Dame (L 0-4). These games led players to realize that Yale can compete with the top teams in the nation. "Especially after the UConn game, we realized how well we could play," King said. "Since then, our goal has been to continue playing up to our potential." Captain Jennifer Mendoza, BR '01, added, "We know that we can play with the top teams in the nation like UConn and Notre Dame. We have to hustle, but it is all a mental thing. We are good and we have finally realized it."

In retrospect, the team's current level of enthusiasm and confidence resulted from the progress it made throughout the season, especially after early disheartening losses. But, according to Mendoza, the Elis were able to bounce back from a disappointing start because of the dedication of the players. "It took us a little while to warm up and start playing well, and those couple games at the beginning of the season cost us," she said. "By not giving up and fighting through the rest of the season, this team showed a lot of character."

Currently redshirting because of an injury, Ciara McCormack, SM '01, offered a sideline perspective. "I think we rebounded well from a disappointing beginning," she said. "The determination and fight that we displayed against top-ranked teams like UConn and Notre Dame were really inspiring."

Now, as the decisive end of the season approaches, Yale's main responsibility involves securing two more wins against Columbia and Brown. After that, the players can only cross their fingers and hope for an NCAA bid. "All we can do now is wait and see what everyone else does," Meredith said.

Back to Sports...