CARSON, CA (December 11, 2004) - The match-up of schools - the University of California at Santa Barbara and Indiana University -- for this year's championship game of the NCAA Division I Men's Soccer College Cup tournament is set and the game will take place tomorrow, Sunday, at The Home Depot Center in Carson.  The game, scheduled to begin at 1 p.m., will crown the 2004 Champion, with the special awards ceremony set to take place immediately following the game.

A large and enthusiastic crowd of 10,647 soccer fans bought tickets to last night's two - and very different -- semifinal games.  UCSB's 5-0 win over unseeded Duke University tied the NCAA College Cup record for largest margin of victory, while Indiana, earlier in the evening, advanced past third-ranked Maryland University in thrilling fashion when the Hoosiers scored at the 109:12 mark of double overtime for a 3-2 win.

Indiana (18-4-1) trailed 1-0 at the half before putting forth a persistent offensive attack, which was highlighted by goals from Brian Plotkin and Mike Ambersley.  Maryland managed to tie the score, 2-2, at the 80:38 mark on a header by Maurice Edu (Fontana/Etiwanda HS), and the score remained tied heading into overtime.  But with just 48 seconds remaining on the clock, a shootout was avoided when Indiana's John Michael Hayden knocked home a header, much to the delight of the many supporters who made the trip out from Bloomington.

The Gauchos (21-2-1) did not let a broken down team bus slow them down from advancing to their first Cup championship game in this their first College Cup appearance.  UCSB scored two first half goals, including a tally by Drew McAthy (Huntington Beach/Huntington Beach HS) just 1:02 into the match, and rode their offensive wave to the end for their 10th consecutive victory.  In goal, Dan Kennedy (Yorba Linda/El Dorado HS) recorded his 13th complete game shutout of the season before what was a large contingent of Gauchos fans, most of whom made the three-hour trip south with several of them sporting sombreros in support of their ninth-ranked Gauchos.

The Hoosiers and Gauchos have met once this season.  UCSB won, 1-0, in double overtime on September 18. 

Tickets for tomorrow's final can be purchased at The Home Depot Center Box Office, through TicketMaster outlets, by calling 866-LA-GROUP or visiting www.aeggrouptickets.com.  

UCLA serves as the host institution and partner with AEG for the 2004 College Cup.  The finals will be shown live on ESPN2. 

Contact: Michael Roth, AEG, 213-742-7155/Lee Callans, AEG, 310-630-2095
Contact: Liza David, UCLA, 310-206-8140
Contact: Mark Bedics, NCAA, 317-917-6541