When we came into the locker room at halftime, we were naturally down because we had given up a goal. And battle the Bruins did. The Tigers switched on the afterburners in the final 15 minutes of the second half, garnering two quality scoring chances, but UCLA goalkeeper CiCi Peterson made the two most important of her eight saves on the evening. Her performance in the second half was just amazing. Clemson head coach Ray Leone was pleased with his team's performance to conclude the game but couldn't hide his squad's disappointment.
Momentum is important in the game of soccer.
We had the momentum and got it back at the end. They took it to them. For the Bruins, the victory marks a gigantic step in the program's eight-year history. The farthest UCLA had advanced in the tournament previously was the quarterfinal round, where Notre Dame routed the Bruins 8-0 in 1997. The victory pleased Ellis, but satisfaction will come from only one thing.