On Monday afternoon the entire ASU women’s soccer team was crowded around the TV in coach Kevin Boyd’s living room, waiting to see if the team made the tournament. Each couch supported six or seven people, with everyone waiting for 2:30 p.m., when the 2010 NCAA tournament bracket would be announced.
On Sunday, Boyd said it would be a shock if they didn’t make it, and at first everyone appeared pretty relaxed. But as the start of the selection show drew near, the talking and laughing slowly began fade.
When the show finally started, there was silence. The Sun Devils weren’t on the first three pages of the bracket, and while a few words were said about matchups, the only real noise was a collective groan when ESPN analyst Julie Foudy appeared on-screen to break down Stanford’s matchup.
But the fourth page was the charm, and the words “Arizona State” appearing on screen resulted in an outbursts of cheering and hugging. The announcer mentioned that ASU was making their second appearance in a row, which led to more cheers, and everyone in the room looked both relieved and excited.
All the seniors were congratulated, and talk immediately began about the matchup with UC Irvine. After the rest of the field was revealed, Boyd stood and told the team how proud he was of them making it this far.
But then it was all business for the Sun Devils. Travel plans were discussed, UC Irvine’s regular-season schedule was briefly analyzed, and then the players began to trickle out. But the overall feeling was clear: ASU is headed to California to meet their postseason destiny. But this time, they’re experienced and ready.
