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NCAA women's tournament Sinclair's three goals help Portland put Iowa State away early 5-0.
Portland (19-0-1), the only one of the tourney's four No. 1 seeds seeded teams to be sent on the road despite being top-ranked, will face host Nebraska (14-7-1) Sunday in the second round. If the Pilots can survive Sunday's match, they will get to return home to Merlo Field for the third round and fourth, if necessary. Big 12 "Player of the Year" Brittany Timko scored on a free kick early in the second half to power Nebraska (14-7-1) past Creighton 1-0 in today's second match. The Cornhuskers' victory was the 200th in the school's 12-year history. Coach John Walker, who started the program, has compiled a 200-59-9 (.763) mark. Sinclair, two days after garnering her third West Coast Conference "Player of the Year" honor, continued her assault on NCAA scoring records with her third hat trick of the season and added an assist while playing only 38 minutes. Freshman midfielder Megan Rapinoe added a goal and assist while sophomore forward Natalie Budge also scored a goal. "It was just one of those days when everything seemed to go in, especially in the first half," Sinclair said. "For the first 20 minutes, we were just on fire. It was just one of those days." Sinclair, who has scored an NCAA Division I record 21 career goals in the postseason, is now alone in second place in Division I history with 106 goals, breaking a tie with former Pilot Tiffeny Milbrett (1990-92, 1994) and North Carolina star Mia Hamm (1989-90, 1992-93). Her 243 career points are sixth best in the NCAA record books. She has 35 goals and nine assists for 79 points to lead the nation in goals and points. The Division I record for goals in a single season is 37, set by Lisa Cole of Southern Methodist in 1987. Danielle Fotopoulos (Southern Methodist\Florida, 1994-96, 1998) holds the career goals record of 118.
Despite being supported by a large contingent of fans, Iowa State lost its first-ever NCAA tournament game and finished 11-7-3. "Portland is an outstanding team and I think they will be fighting for a national championship," Cyclones coach Rebecca Hornbacher said. "To be able to play against them in the first round was a challenge, but our team stepped up and showed we belonged in the NCAA tournament. . . Our game plan was to go in there and have tremendous individual defending, but also to look to attack them. We created opportunities and were dangerous at times and we left it all on the field." The Pilots took control with Rapinoe, the WCC "Freshman of the Year," netting her 10th goal of the season on an assist from Sinclair with 5:02 gone. Rapinoe took Sinclair's cross from the right side and beat Cyclones sophomore goalkeeper Joanna Haig into the top shelf. The same tandem teamed up again to give the Pilots a 2-0 lead at 7:44. Rapinoe made the run into the left side of the penalty area and laid off the ball to Sinclair in the middle. Sinclair took one touch and finished with ease. Budge tallied her sixth goal of the season after a nice set-up by sophomore midfielder Angie Woznuk. Woznuk attacked and drew Haig to the left side of her goal mouth before sliding a pass to Budge for a tap-in at the right post for a 3-0 advantage at 16:10. The Pilots margin increased to 4-0 only 24 seconds later. Sinclair slipped behind the Cyclones defense and drilled a shot from the left side into the right side netting. After sitting out for the remainder of the first half and the first 15 minutes after intermission, Sinclair returned and capped the scoring in the 81st minute. Senior midfielder Lindsey Huie drew out the Cyclones defense before finding Sinclair unmarked at the right post for a 5-0 bulge. Sinclair promptly returned to the bench for the remainder of the contest. Portland, earning its 14th shutout of the season, outshot the Cyclones 20-9. ISU's nine shot attempts equaled nine tried by Arizona earlier this season as the most the Pilots have faced. Haig recorded nine saves for the Cyclones, while Portland junior keepers Cori Alexander, the starter, and Ruth Gilliam each made three saves while playing one half apiece. Portland coach Garrett Smith used all 21 players on his active roster. The Pilots have outscored opponents 65-6 for the season, including a 16-0 edge in the last four outings. In the second game, Nebraska dominated play throughout the contest, holding a 24-8 shots advantage over Creighton (12-6-3) and advanced to the NCAA second round for the 10th consecutive season. Early in the second half, Timko laced a free kick over the defensive wall and over the head of sophomore goalkeeper Valerie Zimmerer to give NU a 1-0 lead at 48:46. Timko, a junior from Coquitlam, British Columbia, peppered the Jays defense with seven shots, three on frame. Nebraska outshot the Bluejays 24-8. In the first half, the Huskers held a 12-6 advantage with two shots hitting a goalpost, two more banging off the crossbar and another three stopped by Zimmerer. Zimmerer made a total of eight saves, while NU freshman keeper Jamie Klages made three saves to post her sixth shutout of the season. |
