This past week, the United States women’s national soccer team has been training at Buck Shaw Field, the home field of the Santa Clara soccer teams, to prepare for their upcoming international friendly match against Japan on Saturday, April 11, at 2:30 p.m. at PayPal Park. While the national team practiced on Buck Shaw Field, the Santa Clara women’s soccer team practiced at the same time on the Stanton Soccer Field, facing the Stevens Soccer Training Center. “It’s so cool for our students to see these athletes and how focused they are and how organized the training sessions are and how sharp things are,” said Santa Clara women’s soccer head coach Jerry Smith. “These are today’s legends, and it’s really cool to see them here.” Many stars, including Lindsey Heaps, Trinity Rodman, Sophia Wilson, Rose Lavelle and Alyssa Thompson, were at the stadium practicing with the team. Rodman appeared to be enjoying herself on the practice field, even dancing to popular hit songs by Olivia Dean and Justin Bieber. “Every time the U.S. women have been in San Jose to play, they’ve always played really well. And it’s a great atmosphere there at PayPal Park,” said Smith. “This school is obviously a really strong sports school. Women’s soccer has always been really successful here. They’ve been training at the same time as us every day, so it’s always fun to see. It brings back a lot of memories,” said Wilson, when asked what it’s like to train at Santa Clara with its rich history in women’s soccer. “Every time we step foot on the pitch, we’re here to inspire and show them anything is possible. I think being role models for them is really crucial, and that’s part of our job,” said Heaps, hoping to inspire young girls who dream of playing soccer. 📝: @aneeka.sideline 📷: @ninaglickphoto

Santa Clara University women’s softball delivered a nail-biting 6-5 win over Oregon State to win game one of the three-game series on Thursday night. The Broncos held a 6-0 advantage midway through the contest and narrowly avoided a late-game collapse to hang onto the victory. The Broncos got off to a stellar start right from the jump as Taryn Clements ’27 delivered a two-run single in the bottom of the first to give the Broncos an early 2-0 lead. Then, the Broncos broke the game open in the bottom of the third as Clements came through again, rocketing a two-out triple to deep right-center field to score two more runs. Clements finished the contest going 2-3 with 4 RBI’s, her 2 hits tying a season high a season high. The Broncos continued the rally with a two-out single from Robynn Balmediano ’26 and an ensuing double from Leiora Davidson ’26 down the left field line. The Broncos’ lead expanded to 6-0, giving them a commanding advantage. After the fast start, the Broncos faced danger at the top of the fourth, as the Beavers quickly loaded the bases with just one out and scored a pair of runs off of Broncos pitcher Cari Ferguson ’28 to cut the deficit to 6-2. Oregon State continued its furious comeback the following inning with a two-run home run to cut the deficit to just two runs. The Broncos then found themselves in another precarious position with the bases loaded and two out. Ferguson continued to battle, walking a Beaver runner to give up another run, before closing the door with a much-needed strikeout. The Broncos’ lead stood at just 6-5, and it remained that way as the game reached the top of the 7th, with the Broncos searching for their final three outs. Ellison Schroeder ’29 closed the door for her second save of the season as the Broncos took the series opener to improve to 18-17 on the year, and 3-1 in the WCC. The Broncos followed Thursday’s victory with an 11-1 win over Oregon State in five innings on Friday, and then fell to the Beavers 4-0 on Saturday. The Broncos won the home series and will host Florida State next Wednesday, April 8th, at 6 p.m. 📝: @gsymkowick 📷: @ninaglickphoto