Aug. 24, 2006

Women's Soccer Hopes to Celebrate in 2006

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - The Memphis Lady Tiger soccer team will kickoff the school's 2006-07 athletic year Friday when they face the Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles at 4:00 p.m. (CST) in Cookeville, Tenn.

The Lady Tiger's are coming off of a preseason slate that saw them split matches, winning 6-0 over Christian Brothers University and falling 4-1 to Saint Louis.

"We've had a great week of practice since we played Saint Louis," said head coach Brooks Monaghan. "That match was good for us, and now we're ready to get to some real games."

Memphis will again look to rely on its talented group of forwards for goal production. The starting trio of Geneil Newbern, Shoko Mikami and Kylie Hayes tallied three goals and 10 points in the squad's two exhibitions and should be ready to run on Friday.

Tech is coming off of a 6-11-2 campaign in 2005 that saw the team finish seventh in the Ohio Valley Conference. The Golden Eagles dropped their lone preseason exhibition of 2006 1-0 to Birmingham-Southern.

Memphis beat Tech 7-0 to open the 2005 season, giving the Lady Tigers a 2-1 lead in the all-time series between the in-state rivals. Memphis has outscored the Golden Eagles 9-1 in their three meetings.

Monaghan is 3-3 in season openers since becoming Memphis' coach. However, the seventh year head man will have high expectations for his team heading into Friday.

"I would like to see us come out with a lot of energy this weekend and get the season started on a positive note," Monaghan said. "The team has put in a lot of hard work during camp, and they've improved tremendously each day. It's time to get started."

Following the match Friday, the Lady Tigers will continue their weekend road trip, heading to UT-Martin Sunday for a 2 p.m. match with the Skyhawks.