By defeating Colorado 16-11 to earn their second Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) title today in as many years, USC locked in an automatic NCAA berth to mark their third-consecutive appearance in the tournament.

In a game that initially appeared to be controlled by USC, Colorado reacted late in the first half to show signs of life, but ultimately couldn't match the Trojans' pace as they racked up eight goals in both halves. 

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"I thought we got outplayed in some instances. You're in a championship game and you have to make plays to win," Colorado Head Coach Ann Elliott said. "Defensively, I think we struggled in the first half in just playing our game and being confident. That set us back. Offensively I think we did a better job. We did a much better job from the first time against USC but it wasn't enough today and we need to get back."

USC senior attacker Gabby McMahon earned the MPSF tournament's Most Valuable Player honors for her potent offensive efforts--she found the back of the net four times for a career high and her fourth hat trick as a Trojan. Her teammate Michaela Martin matched her point total and notched the most draw controls in the game with seven. USC's Cynthia Del Core also enjoyed a historic night as she scored her 12th career hat trick and tallied two assists. On defense, junior goalie Gussie Johns shined brightly by causing two turnovers and resetting the school ground ball record with nine. 

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Colorado's scoring unit was led by senior attacker Johnna Fusco with four, followed by sophomore midfielder Miranda Stinson with three. Tonight's game marked the first time the Buffs have played in the MPSF tournament final in four seasons. In the last three, Stanford displaced the Buffs in the semifinals. Of Colorado's three losses this season, two of them were against USC. 

In its last 40 games, USC has won 36. The Trojans' victory marks their 10th-straight--that's the team's longest winning streak this season and the second-longest in program history.

​​Statistics and quotes courtesy of USCTrojans.com and CUBuffs.com.