SAN DIEGO --  Anson Dorrance hates talking about streaks, but he is approaching yet another on Sunday when North Carolina takes on Penn State in the NCAA Division I Championship at 1:00 p.m. (PT) on ESPNU.

With three decades of dominance, Dorrance and his Tar Heels are trying to continue their dynasty that has won the NCAA Championship at least once every three years since he took over the job in 1979.

After falling to make it to the College Cup in 2010 or 2011, the continuation of North Carolina’s run comes down to this year, but that is the last thing that Dorrance wants his players thinking about at this point.  

“I want [the players] to follow their own dreams and ambitions and not live under this stress – you know this insane tradition,” Dorrance said. “I don’t want them to dread this streak or that streak being broken.

“We want them to have fun. There is no way you are having fun when you have to live up to this crazy [streak].”

On the other bench, Erica Walsh is attempting to make her mark on the history of the game. The Penn State head coach is trying to become only the second female head coach to win the NCAA Championship.

“The honor is to represent Penn State and to be their choice as the coach,” Walsh said about the nobility of possibly being the second female coach to win the title. “I am just thrilled to be sitting with these student-athletes. My staff is the best, and I am very fortunate to work with great people.”

Walsh gave a ton of credit to her staff for the preparation they have put in to get the Nittany Lions to this stage.

“As I sit in front of you, our whole staff is back in hotel watching and studying [tape on North Carolina],” Walsh said. “And then, they are providing that information to these student-athletes in small groups and as a team.

“The preparation is like going to an exam knowing every answer. If you watch Maddy Evans or Christine Nairn, there was not a question in their mind about being successful last night.”

The research helped the Nittany Lions top Florida State 2-1 in overtime and advance to their first NCAA Championship tilt. By benefit of playing in the early game, Walsh and her staff was able to get a peak at North Carolina’s 1-0 double overtime 1-0 win over Stanford afterward.

“I saw a lot of talent and I saw a lot of experience,” Walsh said about the Tar Heels. “I saw a lot of pace and I saw a lot of the things I have seen all season long. We were talking on the way in about some of the experiences in the Big Ten mainly Nebraska, which is a team that puts you under tremendous pressure for 90 minutes. At moments, we were starting to crack in that game, but again that was a month and a half ago now. We have learned a lot about ourselves since then.

“Through our experiences this season [and] through the teams we have been able to schedule, we are prepared for the likes of UNC or anybody we could face at this point of the season.”

While the Nittany Lions staff watch, North Carolina went through a physically challenging encounter that lasted 105 minutes. The quick turnaround to the early afternoon clash was of some concern to Dorrance.

“This game was not designed to be played two times in three days,” Dorrance said. “My fear is we are going to be leg weary. You can’t play a flat three like we play it without pressure.

“[Without pressure] the whole system collapses like a house of cards, so the fear that I have is playing against an elite team like Stanford, which took basically every calorie we had to win the game, to now come back in two days and play against an exceptional team in Penn State. It will be a huge challenge for us physically and psychologically.” 

Dorrance will be leading on the senior leadership to overcome that hurdle. On Saturday, he was seated beside his captain Amber Brooks who will cap off her exceptional career with the Tar Heels in the title match.

The coach revealed during the press conference that the TopDrawerSoccer.com Player of the Year will have her name fixed on the #22 North Carolina jersey for the future – the Tar Heels ‘ tradition of honoring a player instead of retiring the jersey.

Tradition and history awaits the teams on Sunday. Now, it just depends on who is ready and who can handle the biggest stage in women’s college soccer.