No. 2 Wake Forest (15-3-4, 7-2-1 ACC) advanced to the College Cup on Friday evening, outlasting No. 1 USC (18-1-4, 10-0-1 Big Ten) in penalty kicks, 4-3, at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif.
The Demon Deacons defeated Morehead State, Colorado and No. 3 Ohio State in the NCAA Tournament prior to their bout with the Trojans.
Senior defender Zara Chavoshi fired a through ball to junior forward Caiya Hanks from beyond the midline in the 21st minute. Hanks fired a shot into the right side of the net from deep inside the box to put Wake Forest up 1-0.
After the Trojans took a 2-1 lead, the Demon Deacons stayed aggressive and responded in the 80th minute. Hanks showed tremendous effort to save a loose ball from rolling out of bounds on the baseline, finding junior forward Alex Wood in the middle of the box. Wood squeezed the ball into the net with a right-footed shot for her second goal of the season.
Hanks now ranks third in program history for total points (33) in a single season, only behind Katie Stengel’s 2010 (37 points) and 2011 (46 points) seasons.
Regulation ended in a 2-2 draw and neither team scored in the two overtime periods. Sophomore goalie Valentina Amaral had a pair of clutch stops on the Trojans’ first and third penalty kick attempts.
The Demon Deacons sealed the win off a shot from senior defender Kristin Johnson.
Amaral continued her outstanding season, finishing the match with six saves. She holds a .712 goals-against average in over 1,390 minutes of action. It is more impressive since Amaral was not even the starter until conference play began at North Carolina on Sep. 12.
“Our team never settles and somehow we found a way to work ourselves back in the game,” Head Coach Tony De Luz said. This was a committed team effort; now we have a chance to win it all.”
Now, Wake Forest will play No. 3 Stanford (16-4-2, 5-4-1 ACC) in Cary, N.C. on Dec. 6 at 5:00 p.m. with a national championship berth on the line.
A win for the Demon Deacons would mark their first national championship appearance in program history. Meanwhile, the Cardinal are looking to return to the title match after finishing as the runner-up to Florida State last season.
Stanford hosted No. 4 Notre Dame in the quarterfinals. The Fighting Irish out-shot the Cardinal 17-to-13; however, five first-half saves from senior goalkeeper Haley Craig helped Stanford secure a 2-0 victory.
Wake Forest upset Stanford earlier in the season on Sep. 19 to earn their first win over a No. 1 team in program history. Senior midfielder Emily Colton scored the only goal of the match in the first half. The defense played phenomenal in the closing minutes, forcing several turnovers to counter an aggressive Cardinal attack.
The Demon Deacons will certainly look to run out in transition on Friday evening. Limiting fouls will be vital, as they average 10.45 per match, which is the most in the ACC. If Wake Forest plays up-tempo, without losing their intensity, the path to the national championship is a lot clearer.
