Aug. 17, 2006

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - The Lady Tiger soccer team will close out their 2006 preseason schedule Friday at Mike Rose Soccer Complex against nationally ranked Saint Louis at 7 p.m.

Memphis cruised to a 6-0 victory over Christian Brothers University Wednesday but should expect tougher competition from the Lady Billikens Friday night. Saint Louis reached the NCAA Tournament in 2005, beating Stanford in the first round before falling to national powerhouse Santa Clara.

The Lady Billikens return nine starters and 20 letterwinners from last year's squad, including their two top scorers in Kelly Ferguson and Maureen Hughes.

The Lady Tigers saw their new 4-3-3 alignment pay big dividends in their contest with CBU and will continue to rely on their talented group of forwards, including sophomore Kylie Hayes and 2005 All-Conference USA Preseason selection Shoko Mikami.

Memphis head coach Brooks Monaghan is excited to see how his team will respond to the tough competition and knows that Friday's match will be a good measuring stick for the Lady Tigers as they move into the regular season.

"This ought to be a good test for us," Monaghan said. "Saint Louis is a good team, and they're going to make us run and play an up-tempo game."

Admission to the match will be free for the public, and Coach Monaghan and the Lady Tigers are hoping to have a big crowd on hand for what should be a great contest.

"It's going to be an entertaining match," Monaghan said. "We would love to have a lot fans at Mike Rose. Having all of our fans behind us makes it a great atmosphere."