May 9, 2004
USC
Coach Jovan Vavic
Comparing this win to winning the USC men's nation title last fall...
"It feels different because we were expected to win [today], so it's more of a relief. So much expectation went into this season. I'm probably going to enjoy it more tomorrow. We have 3 or 4 girls who will be serious candidates for the 2008 Olympic team. Our best players are really freshman and sophomores. I expected the game today to be tough. They had one more game to win a national championship. The LMU coaches did a great job preparing their team for a championship. They played much better in this game [than when USC and LMU met earlier this season]. Some of our girls were nervous. This was our first trip to the NCAA tournament, it was their fourth."
On the 8-man format next year...
"Next year there will be more teams, more excitement."
Brittany Hayes
"I was pretty confident in our team. I have so much faith in them. Kelly [Graff] is so great in the goal. She's the best goalie in the nation."
LMU
Coach John Loughran
"I was concerned about coming off flat after last night's win [against Stanford]. We made some adjustments and the girls got back into it. We played with a lot of pride and character, and we played tough. We got within one and they came back down and really got us within two meters. Simms controlled the offense, forced us to adjust, and really hurt us inside. We gave up 12 ejections. It's hard to beat a team like USC with that many ejections. We didn't draw enough of them. We were just a little tight and a little nervous."
"We had great support from the University, our fans, and our families. Our goal is to win a national title. We're losing six seniors, but also looking forward to the future."
"USC is an undefeated team. Coach Vavic's teams run like clockwork. He has won a men's and a women's title in the same year now...it's impressive. His teams are more fundamentally sound than most teams. We're excited about the future. We want to be back next year and win one."
Cara Colton
"We went out there strong. We were mentally tough. We played with heart and we wanted to win."
Katie Murray
"We played as a team through the whole thing. Our heart and chemistry have gotten us through up to this point. We gave them a good fight. Overall USC's outside shooters are great. We had some defensive breakdowns yesterday, but did a better job stopping them today on the six on five's.