Death, Taxes, and the Santa Clara Broncos Making the NCAA Tournament
Life’s certainties.
Few things in life are guaranteed. Thankfully, one such guarantee is the postseason success of the Santa Clara women’s soccer team. For the 30th time in program history, the Broncos are headed to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Tournament.
This year, they are ranked 11th in the country, earning one of the top 16 national seeds in the tournament and a first-round bye. Their first match is against Ohio State and scheduled for Saturday, May 1 at 5:00 p.m. PST in Cary, North Carolina.
“A staple of Santa Clara soccer is our togetherness,” said Head Coach Jerry Smith. “Yes, we have depth, we have leadership, but our team chemistry this year has been key.”
That “togetherness” has been on full display this year. Last August, Santa Clara returned to training camp with hearts set on a hardware finish in the fall. They were quarantined in a “bubble” for two months, practicing in the late summer heat, bogged down by the smokey air of wildfire season. They followed strict COVID-19 protocols, which allowed them to see teammates and other athletic staff members only during practice.
As the season drew nearer and the coronavirus pandemic worsened, it became clear that a fall soccer campaign would be unfeasible. Sure enough, the West Coast Conference (WCC) decided to postpone the season until the spring.
While this ultimately put the Broncos’ goals on hold, they stormed into the spring campaign looking as sharp as ever. They went 7-0 in conference play, beating WCC powerhouses Brigham Young (BYU) and Pepperdine University on the road in two double-overtime thrillers along the way. Their only loss this season came against BYU in a non-conference game, the first time the Cougars had ever beaten Santa Clara at Buckshaw Stadium.
“We’ve always struggled [to win] at BYU and Pepperdine,” Smith said. “Our two hard-fought games [at their stadiums] this year makes me wonder, ‘Is this the year we [win it all?]’”
This could very well be the year that the Broncos bring home another NCAA Championship. The program last won the title in 2001 with a 1-0 victory over the University of North Carolina. They went 6-1 in conference play, their one loss coming on the road against Pepperdine.
The Broncos have won at least one game in the tournament for five consecutive years, including three runs to the Third Round dating back to 2015. Smith has brought his squad to the Second Round in 23 of his 29 tournament appearances. He has hit many milestones with Santa Clara soccer, including a 34-year tenure as the head coach and over 500 career wins. He became just the third women’s soccer coach in NCAA history to ever do so. Adding another ring to his mantle would further cement his legacy amongst the NCAA greats.
As the team heads into this year’s tournament play, a common belief within the clubhouse is that this team can repeat some of the 2001 magic that led the Broncos’ to their only championship to date.
Santa Clara’s high-tempo offense will determine how far the Broncos play in North Carolina. Smith’s squad enters tournament play with the seventh-best offensive unit in the country, averaging 2.7 goals and 8.3 points per game: led by sophomore Izzy D’Aquila and senior Kelsey Turnbow.
D’Aquila, the reigning WCC Freshman of the year, proved that her first year was only the beginning of her stardom. D’Aquila followed up her 20-goal campaign in 2019 with an impressive sophomore season, finding the back of the net five times in this year’s shortened seven-game season.
Despite the team’s abbreviated schedule, underlying statistics confirm D’Aquila’s improvement. She saw her shot (18.1% to 20.8%) and shot on goal (45.8% to 66.7%) percentages rise during her second year.
“I’m glad I’ve been able to contribute as much as I have,” D’Aquila said. “As an offensive unit, our goal is to get at least two goals every game.”
Scoring the second goal in games this year has been the team’s recipe for success. The Broncos scored multiple goals in six of their eight contests.
Another key offensive contributor is striker Kelsey Turnbow. This will be her fourth trip to the NCAA Tournament repping Santa Clara’s scarlet red.
“This team is special because we’ve really jumped over so many hurdles to get to this point,” Turnbow said. “My goal each year stays the same though: find a way to help the team win any way that I can.”
Turnbow’s off-season training with a local high school boys team back home in Tennessee allowed her to hone her fundamentals and improve her speed of play. The hard work paid off. She has scored a team-high seven goals and is tied for sixth nationally with 1.0 goals per game.
Saturday’s matchup will feature the No. 11 Santa Clara versus the Ohio State Buckeyes. The Buckeyes put up five goals against Stony Brook University in the First Round on Wednesday night––their most ever in NCAA Tournament play. The Broncos should be able to stick to their offensive approach and trust in their defensive line to limit shots on goal.
“Ultimately, it’s up to us to control what we can control,” said Smith. “If we can play our game and stay focused on playing the way we know how, I believe we have as good of a shot this year as ever.”