Huskers Advance to the Elite Eight

Lincoln -- Freshman Breanna Boyd's goal with 23 minutes remaining in regulation lifted fourth-ranked Nebraska to a 1-0 win over No. 11 Texas A&M in the third round of the NCAA Tournament in front of 1,413 fans at the Abbott Sports Complex.

With the win, the Huskers advance to meet Notre Dame in the Elite Eight next Sunday, Nov. 28, at 1 p.m. at the Abbott Sports Complex. The Irish, who have eliminated NU in the NCAA Tournament each of the past two seasons, defeated Stanford, 1-0, Friday night to advance to the quarterfinals.

Boyd's header into the upper corner of the net past A&M reserve goalkeeper Angela Barker broke a scoreless tie and gave the Huskers, 22-1-1 on the season, the margin of victory. Off a corner kick, sophomore Meghan Anderson found Boyd in the center of the box, allowing the freshman midfielder from Calgary, Alberta to score her fourth goal of the season. The assist was Anderson's 12th of the year.

"Meghan Anderon swung in a perfect ball and all I had to do was finish it with a header," said Boyd, who scored her first collegiate game-winning goal.

With the loss, A&M, which had fallen to NU in College Station by a 1-0 score in the regular season, ends its season with a 17-5-1 record, reaching the Sweet 16 for the second time in school history.

The Huskers had an opportunity five minutes earlier as sophomore Becky Preston had a 1 vs. 1 opportunity

against A&M starting goalkeeper Melanie Wilson, but Wilson, who made three saves, received a red card after deflecting a Becky Preston shot outside of the box. Texas A&M played the final 27 minutes at a one-player disadvantage.

Texas A&M reserve goalkeeper Angela Barker recorded one save for the Aggies, while Nebraska starter Karina LeBlanc posted five saves for her second straight shutout in NCAA Tournament play and her 13th shutout of the season.

Nebraska coach John Walker credited Texas A&M with playing an excellent game.

"Texas A&M is an outstanding team, and I'm not sure the rest of the country knows that, but we definitely do," Walker said. "The Big 12 is still a relatively young conference, so we don't get a lot of respect yet around the country, but Texas A&M is a great team."

Walker said Nebraska was looking forward to the next round.

"I'd be lying if I gave you the standard coach's answer that its just another game," Walker said. "There is no question that this is a tremendously huge game for us and the program. We understand that it is going to be a great game, and Notre Dame is a great team with great players and great tradition. But we're definitely happy to be playing in Lincoln this year."

NCAA Third-Round Scores

Road	Score	Home	Score	Quarterfinal Opponent
Boston College	0	@ Connecticut	5	vs. Santa Clara
Hartford	3	@ Virginia	2 (3OT)	vs. Penn St.
UCLA	0	@ Santa Clara	7	vs. Connecticut
Wake Forest	0	@ Clemson	0 (wins on PK)	vs North Carolina
William & Mary	1	@ North Carolina	5	vs. Clemson
Stanford	0	@ Notre Dame	1	vs. Nebraska
Southern Methodist	0	@ Penn State	5	vs. Hartford
Texas A&M	0	@ Nebraska	1 (2nd)	vs. Notre Dame