The 2010 College Cup gets underway today at 4 p.m. (Eastern time) in Cary, N.C. Notre Dame takes on Ohio State, which is making its first appearance in the Final Four, as is Boston College. The Eagles face Stanford at 6:30 p.m. on ESPNU. The Notre Dame vs. Ohio State game will be televised on ESPN2.
Here are some quotes from Thursday’s pre-tournament press conference.
Notre Dame
Head Coach Randy Waldrum talked about moving Lauren Fowlkes from defender to midfield: “Lauren Fowlkes gives us a player that can hold the ball. We have a lot of speed up front and a lot of players that are good at taking people on, and we needed someone to hold the ball for us a little bit. It wasn’t a move that came out of the blue for us. She played that way for us all year last year. The move has been really good for us, and she gives us that person who can hold the ball for us and allow others to attack and play. She brings that element to us.”
Ohio State
Head Coach Lori Walker talked about how the team evolved into a championship-caliber team: “A lot of what started to happen with this team happened almost a year ago when we finished second in the conference. This senior class set out to make sure we were the most fit we’ve ever been and prepared as we could be to win the Big Ten championship. We have a ton of respect for Penn State. They’ve set the bar for so many years. Taking care of that game early on really made for an exciting run for our team. It was a great run. Big Ten competition is always wide open.”
Stanford
Senior forward Christen Press: “This year we’ve been attacking as a team a lot more. We have people coming from all positions, all angles – Rachel Quon coming from the outside, Teresa [Noyola] sneaking up the middle – and it’s opened up a lot of opportunities for our team to put the ball in the back of the net.”
Boston College
Head Coach Alison Foley on having a rematch of last year’s regional final with Stanford: “For the game against Stanford last year, they were seeded quite high and we understood why they were No. 1 after that game. Coming back from there, we just mentioned that we wanted to see their team again. Here goes game No. 2. It’s exciting for us.”