Soccer Watch

Wait 'til next year. The youth of the defense (four frosh in the starting back five) finally caught up to the Lady Longhorns last weekend, as they lost a 2-0 lead over UT-El Paso in the last 10 minutes, and the game less than five minutes into sudden-death overtime, to bow out of the NCAA playoffs in the first round. Next year? The Horns return 10 starters from a team that was very good indeed for long stretches this year – except for suffering too many lapses like the one Friday night. I'm sure coach Petrucelli can hardly wait. Meanwhile, 13 of the 16 seeds nationwide, including all the big favorites, made it into this week's Round of 16. And the NCAA men kick off their tournament this weekend as well; see www.ncaasports.com for more info and brackets.

The L.A. Galaxy won the 2005 MLS Cup on Sunday, beating the New England Revolution, 1-0 in overtime.

A trio of outsiders were among the last five teams to make it into the 2006 World Cup field as qualifying ended Wednesday. Australia upset Uruguay in a penalty kick shoot-out in Sydney, while Trinidad & Tobago had to win on the road in Bahrain to qualify for the first time ever, and become the smallest nation in the field, with a population smaller than Metro Austin's. And in Europe, Switzerland stunned favored Turkey in Istanbul.

UEFA Champions League next week: Villareal at Manchester Utd. is on ESPN2, Tuesday, Nov. 22, 1:30pm