LA JOLLA, Calif. – Behind a pair of first half goals from freshmen Anne Wethe and Courtney Capobianco, the third-seeded UC San Diego women’s soccer team clinched its seventh CCAA Tournament Championship with a 3-1 victory over No. 4 seed Cal State Dominguez Hills Sunday afternoon at Triton Soccer Field.

UCSD improved to 14-3-4 and claims the CCAA’s automatic berth into next week’s Division II Soccer Championships. The Tritons will now await the decision of the NCAA selection committee as to their first round opponent. The 48-team field will be announced Monday at 2:00 p.m.

CSUDH, which knocked off top-seed Sonoma State to reach the title match, will receive an at large bid into the NCAA Tournament with a record of 13-9-0. 

After seniors Natasha Belak-Berger and Jessica McGovern led UCSD past San Francisco State in a penalty kick shootout in the semifinals Friday night, it was a couple of rookies stepping up for the Tritons on Sunday.

Wethe gave UCSD a 1-0 lead in the 10th minute and Capobianco scored the eventual game-winner at the 30:30 mark, igniting a Triton offense that had scored just once in the team’s previous five games.

Neither player had scored a goal all season.

“On Friday night it was two of our seniors getting it done and today we got great performances from a couple of freshman,” head coach Brian McManus said. “I thought both Anne and Courtney played well against San Francisco State and it carried over to today. When you’ve got a roster full of players that are capable of stepping up at any time, you’ve got to like your chances.”

Wethe’s goal came on a nice pass from Belak-Berger from the right side. The Los Alamitos, Calif. native quickly one-timed the ball up and over Toro goalkeeper Alyssa Congdon’s head to give the Tritons a lead they would never relinquish.

Capobianco’s scoring play started when fellow freshman Sarah McTigue played a ball forward on a header. After receiving the pass, Capobianco chipped it past Congdon for her first collegiate goal.

Cal State Dominguez Hills cut the deficit in half in the 63rd minute on midfielder Melissa Livergood’s second goal of the tournament, but UCSD reclaimed its two score advantage five minutes later on a successful penalty kick off the foot of Belak-Berger. A Toro defender was whistled for taking down senior midfielder Kelly Mayo from behind, setting up the final goal of the match.

Belak-Berger, who was named the CCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Offensive Player, leads the squad with 12 goals this season. She is a perfect 4-for-4 on PKs in 2008.

The Toros had their chances to cut into the deficit again down the stretch, but senior goalkeeper Jessica McGovern and the UCSD defense held its ground. After making five saves during the thrilling shootout Friday night, McGovern tallied another five stops against CSUDH on Sunday. She was named the CCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Defensive Player.

The Toros outshot the Tritons 15-13 for the match, but UCSD capitalized on its opportunities, converting half of its shots on goal.

Joining Belak-Berger and McGovern on the CCAA All-Tournament Team were Wethe, Capobianco, and senior defender Amanda Esquivel.

The title was UCSD’s third in the last four years and seventh since joining the CCAA in 2000.

CCAA ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Robin Bowman (San Francisco State)
Brittany Peterson (Sonoma State)
Melanie DeSalvo (Cal State Dominguez Hills)
Melissa Livergood (Cal State Dominguez Hills)
Jessica Murphy (Cal State Dominguez Hills)
Yvonne Vasquez (Cal State Dominguez Hills)
Natasha Belak-Berger (UC San Diego)
Amanda Esquivel (UC San Diego)
Courtney Capobianco (UC San Diego)
Jessica McGovern (UC San Diego)
Anne Wethe (UC San Diego)

Most Outstanding Offensive Player: Natasha Belak-Berger (UC San Diego)
Most Outstanding Defensive Player: Jessica McGovern (UC San Diego)