Sept. 18, 2005

Box Score

Murfreesboro, Tenn. - Shoko Mikami recorded a hat trick and Kylie Hayes scored a goal for the sixth straight game to lead the Memphis women's soccer team to a 5-1 win at Middle Tennessee on Sunday afternoon. The Tigers improve to 6-2 with the win and have one non-conference game remaining before Conference USA play begins. The hat trick by Mikami is the first hat trick for a Memphis player since Jessica Gjertsen recorded one in the last game of the 2000 season.

Mikami scored both the first and second goals of the game for the Tigers early on in the contest. At the 9:50 mark, after taking a corner kick, Mikami snuck in behind the defense and after being fed a pass by Caroline Barrett, beat Blue Raider goalie Danielle Perreault one-on-one for her seventh goal of the season. Then, less than three minutes later, she scored her eighth goal when she put home a free kick just out of the reach of Perreault. It was her fourth goal off of a free kick this year.

It remained 2-0 until the Tigers tacked on another score before the first half ended at the 34:39 when Asuka Kubota scored her fourth goal of the year off an assist from Mikami, who fed Kubota a well-placed pass. Kubota finished from about 10 yards away.

A little less than eight minutes into the second half, Hayes made it six straight games with a goal when she recorded her eighth goal of the season from about 12 yards out. Katy Booth assisted on the score, her second helper of the season and second in as many Sundays, as she has recorded her first career assist in last Sunday's home win over Missouri State. Hayes, who on Friday night in the win over Mississippi State had become the first player in Memphis history to score a goal in five straight games, has now recorded a goal in seven of Memphis' eight games.

The Blue Raiders, who had beaten ACC power Clemson 1-0 on Friday night, got on the scoreboard at the 79:40 mark on an unassisted goal from Kala Morgan. Mikami then made it a hat trick with under 15 seconds left in the game at 89:47 when she once again beat Perreault one-on-one for her ninth goal of the year. Sarah MacGregor was credited with her second assist of the season.

"The last two games I thought we didn't play our best and we were certainly lucky to get one win in those last two," said Memphis coach Brooks Monaghan. "Our focus all year has been to improve in each game so that we gel as a team when we get into conference play and this game put us back on track."

Isabel Briones made six saves to record her sixth win of the year. The Tigers outshot Middle Tennessee 15-12.

After four games in eight days, Memphis will have a week off before its next game at Southeast Missouri State next Sunday, September 25 at 6:00 p.m. in Cape Girardeau, Mo. It will be the final non-conference game of the year for the Tigers, who open Conference USA play next Friday night, September 30 at home against Tulane.

Postgame Notes: With the five goal output in today's game, Memphis has now recorded 26 goals in eight games, just two shy of equaling last year's total of 28 goals in 19 games ... Memphis also had 28 assists all of last year and has 25 already this year to go along with 77 points, just seven shy of last year's 84 ... With the win, the Tigers take a 2-1 lead in the series vs. Middle Tennessee and also avenge last year's 2-1 loss in Memphis' home opener ... Middle Tennessee had now allowed more than two goals in a game until today's game ... Mikami has now scored in six of Memphis' eight games while Hayes has scored in seven ... Both Mikami and Hayes have recorded goals in the same game five times ... Memphis played 23 players in the game for the third time this year ... Chloe James made her collegiate debut ... Caroline Barrett has recorded a point in three of the last four games.