CHENEY, Wash. – The Big Sky champion Eastern Washington University women's soccer team will keep its season moving this weekend at the NCAA Division I Championship, in a first round matchup with No. 2 Southern California on Saturday, Nov. 12 at 1 p.m. Pacific Time.

USC will host Eastern in the round of 64 on its home field in Los, Angeles, California. Southern California owns a 14-4-1 with an RPI rank of six, compared to Eastern Washington's 13-4-4 record and RPI of 104.

Last Time Out
EWU took home the BSC championship in a 1-1 thriller against Northern Arizona that was decided in penalty kicks. After NAU scored first in the 41st minute, the Eagles countered with a goal in the 49th minute. Jenny Chavez received a corner from Chloe Williams and sent the shot past multiple defenders into the net.

Both teams came into overtime playing tough, and the offenses would stay off the board through both overtime periods. The game would be sent to a championship-deciding penalty kick shootout. The Lumberjacks got the first shot, and senior goalkeeper Mallory Taylor made the correct read on a diving save. Chavez would nail the Eagles' first attempt, and from here the teams would trade makes until the fifth and final attempt by NAU would sail high over the net. EWU would be ruled the winner with a 4-3 advantage in PKs.

All-Time Series
This will be the third time Eastern has played USC in program history, but the first time in head coach Chad Bodnar's tenure. The all-time record stands at 2-0 in favor of the Trojans, with the most recent matchup being a 5-1 loss at home for the Eagles.

Season of Firsts

Eastern's 2016 season has been defined by a long series of firsts for the program. It started with the team's first-ever postseason victory in the quarterfinals against Montana. Eventually EWU made its first appearance in the championship round of the conference tournament, and took home the hardware against a higher-seeded NAU team. The Eagles also set a record with a program-best 13 wins in a season. Now as they're given their first NCAA Championship appearance, the team could make history once again with a win against the Trojans.

Bracket Landscape
With Southern California holding the No. 2 seed on Eastern's side of the bracket, the other seeded teams include No. 1 Florida, No. 3 Florida State, and No. 4 Auburn. If EWU were to upset the Trojans, it would be guaranteed a second round matchup in Texas. Texas A&M faces-off against Texas Christian just a few hours after the Eagles play their game.

All-Conference
Eastern tied a program record for three players selected to the All-Big Sky First Team. Forward Chloe Williams, junior defender M'Kenna Hayes, and sophomore midfielder Jenny Chavez were among the honored players.

For Williams, the conferences second-straight Offensive MVP and Golden Boot winner, this is her third time being selected. She has been a mainstay on the team since her freshman season and was unanimously selected. Both Hayes and Chavez made the second team in last year's season. Junior Aimie Inthoulay and Delaney Romero were given honorable mentions.

All-Tournament
After winning the league title, the Big Sky All-Tournament team was announced. Five players from EWU represented the squad. Williams, Chavez, Hayes, Inthoulay, and sophomore Allison Raniere were selected. Williams was also named the tournament's Most Valuable Player.

Defensive Superiority
The Eagles played all-out on defense in the conference tournament, recording two shutouts and going the entire tournament without giving up a regular goal. The only score put up on the defense was a penalty kick by the Lumberjacks in the finals. EWU was the only team in the entire tournament to shutout a matchup.

Including the postseason, Eastern kept opponents scoreless in seven matches.

Tournament Statistics
Chloe Williams was the leading scorer for the Eagle's in the conference tournament, scoring three points on one goal and one assist. Allison Raniere and Jenny Chavez each scored a goal, while Aimie Inthoulay had one assist. Mallory Taylor played all 290 postseason minutes, tallying nine saves. She also had two stops in penalty kicks with Northern Arizona.

Team Leaders
Chloe Williams leads both the team and conference with 36 points, 15 goals, and 93 shots. 44 of her shots were on target for a shot on goal percentage of .473. She also led the Big Sky with six game-winning goals.

Aimie Inthoulay is second on the team with 14 points, and a conference-leading total of 12 assists. Inthoulay extinguished the previous school record of eight assists in a season with her mark.

Second on the team in goals is Chavez with five and 11 points. Williams and Raniere are tied for second with six assists.

Knowing Your Opponent: Southern California
The Trojans are ranked No. 7 in the nation on the NSCAA coaches poll. They finished 8-2-1 in the Pac-12 Conference and 14-4-1 overall. In its last matchup, USC was upset by No. 18 UCLA on Nov. 4, losing 1-0. Earlier in the season, USC shutout the No. 2 team in the nation, Stanford, 3-0.

Head Coach Keidane McAlpine is in his third season with the program, and has led Southern California to three-straight NCAA tournament berths in all three of his season. They return nine of their 11 starters from last season's team that made the Sweet 16, while bringing in 11 newcomers.

Junior forward Alex Anthony leads the team in scoring with 23 points on nine goals and five assists. In total, the Trojans have four players with over 10 points. Senior Kayla Mills is the defensive leader, having won the 2015 Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year award. She has three assists in 2016.

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