Head coach Mauricio Ingrassia wants the NCAA selection committee to know his Long Beach State women’s soccer team “will be ready for next week.”
Ingrassia is confident the 49ers will be among the 64-team field when the pairings are announced for the NCAA Tournament today at 5 p.m.
“I think our team has done enough to get in,” he said. “I’m looking forward to watching the [selection] show.”
The show will air on ESPNEWS from 5-5:30 p.m. with a viewing party at The Nugget.
Here’s something for the NCAA selection committee to think about: The 49ers did not officially lose Sunday at George Allen Field. UC Santa Barbara may have won the Big West Conference Tournament championship, but a loss won’t be charged to LBSU’s record.
Under NCAA rules because of the penalty-kick shootout needed to decide an official conference champion, the game was officially scored as a tie and will be reflected as such on the ‘Niners record.
Regardless of the outcome, LBSU came out sharp with the same attacking philosophy Ingrassia brought from nearby Long Beach City College. The 49ers out-shot the Gauchos, 6-2, in the first half and UCSB didn’t even register a shot on goal.
The defense, which recorded 11 shutouts this season, quickly diffused any charges toward LBSU goalkeeper Liz Ramos.
Sophomore Grace Shevlin cutoff oncoming Gaucho attackers, defenders Sara Baca and Bo Rael put their heads and feet in the way of any openings a ball tried to find and 50-50 balls floating through the cold air were being redirected to UCSB’s goal.
When the Gauchos broke through the defense and reeled off seven shots — five on goal — in the second half, there stood Ramos, who finished with six saves.
After two overtimes still couldn’t decide a winner, the automatic NCAA bid was put on the line in a shootout — five attempts for each team — but the teams were still in a stalemate.
It wasn’t over until the eighth attempt off the foot of Yeraldy Hurtado, which hit the bottom left corner of the goal and sent the UCSB bench into euphoria.
The committee’s decision should be more about this lone match, also.
“If the selection committee sees our season for what it is, an outstanding season having gone through the Big West undefeated, this doesn’t count as a loss,” Ingrassia said.
The 49ers ended a three-year drought and won their first conference tournament match in school history against the University of Pacific last Thursday. LBSU entered the tournament as the No. 25 team in the nation, according to the NSCAA/adidas Top-25 rankings announced last Tuesday. The ‘Niners also were ranked 20th in Ratings Percentage Index (RPI), which takes into account the teams’ and opponents’ winning percentage.
So, for a tournament that allows 64 entries to not include a program that is not only nationally ranked, but plays a competitive schedule, the NCAA would have a tough explanation to deliver and should just get rid of the rankings altogether.
LBSU should be on the brink of its first-ever NCAA Tournament in the program’s history.
Today’s announcement should feel like anything but a loss … or whatever Sunday’s result wants to be called.
I am going to be surprised if the Big West is a 2-bid conference this year. Mauricio Ingrassia is like Avram Grant. He can get the wins, but he can’t get us the hardware. If the announcement comes and the Beach isn’t selected, I want Ingrassia OUT.