CARY, N.C. -- Anson Dorrance has led North Carolina to the NCAA Women's College Cup 24 times in the 27-year history of the event.
But never before has he seen a final four as stacked as this one.
The top four seeds reached the national semifinals for the first time since 1997 and just the fifth time overall. The teams have the most combined wins (92) and tied for the fewest combined losses (two) of any final foursome in the history of the tournament.
"This is a really powerful final four," said Dorrance, who has guided the Tar Heels to 18 NCAA championships, most recently here in 2006. "My feeling is this might be the best Notre Dame team ever, my feeling is this might be the best UCLA team ever, and my feeling is that this might be the best Stanford team ever.
"And for all of us to collide here this weekend is tremendous."
Stanford (22-1-1) and Notre Dame (25-0-0) kick off the action Friday at 4:30 p.m., followed by North Carolina (23-1-2) and UCLA (22-0-2).
The Fighting Irish, who are riding a school-record 25-game winning streak, enter the weekend as the top-ranked team in the country. They are making their fourth appearance in the Women's College Cup in the last five years, including their third in a row.
Notre Dame last won the national championship here in 2004. But seniors such as Kerri Hanks, the only women's player in Division I history with at least 73 goals and 73 assists in a career, want a title of their own after falling short in the final four the last two years.
"This year, not winning is just unacceptable to everyone on the team," Irish midfielder Courtney Rosen said. "I think that's just the mentality that we have."
Stanford's players won't have any College Cup experience to draw upon when they take on Notre Dame. The Cardinal is playing in the NCAA tournament for the 11th consecutive season, but team is making its first College Cup appearance since 1993.
"It's business as usual for us in this game," said Stanford coach Paul Ratcliffe, whose team has set a school record for victories in a season. "We're excited to be here, but our goal is to win the national title. We have to take care of business, play to the best of our ability and get the nerves out early."
North Carolina's players should feel comfortable in their surroundings. The Tar Heels, who have traveled just 35 miles here from Chapel Hill, N.C., won the ACC tournament title last month on the same field where they will play the Bruins.
North Carolina has eliminated UCLA in the College Cup three previous years (2000, 2003 and 2006), each time going on to win the national championship. Yet it's a loss, last season's 3-2 defeat at the hands of Notre Dame in the NCAA tournament's third round, that has driven the Tar Heels this season.
"We were disappointed with how last year turned out, and I think we learned a lot from it," North Carolina midfielder Yael Averbuch said. "This year feels completely different to us."
The Tar Heels, who lead the nation in goals (86), will attack a UCLA defense that has allowed just five goals all season. UCLA has posted a school-record 19 shutouts and went through the regular season undefeated for the first time in school history.
The Bruins also are making their sixth consecutive appearance in the College Cup, the longest active streak in the country. But that feat doesn't make them the favorite to win their first national championship. Here, they're just one-quarter of a fearsome foursome.
"I'm not a betting woman, but I think it would be hard to nail down a favorite for this weekend," UCLA coach Jillian Ellis said. "I think that says a lot for the parity amongst the players and the depth that's out there in recruiting. It's a wonderful thing to see."
