Sept. 19, 2001

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Memphis women's soccer takes its newly evened 2-2-1 record on the road for a pair of weekend matches against the best Conference USA has to offer, according to the conference coaches preseason poll.

The Lady Tigers open the weekend with a 7 p.m. tilt against St. Louis at Robert R. Hermann Field on Friday night. Memphis is 2-3 all-time against the Billikens and will be assuming the underdog role, with St. Louis picked to finish second in the conference this season.

In its last meeting with St. Louis, Jen Thiele notched Memphis' only goal in a convincing 3-1 loss against the Billikens. This year, however, the Lady Tigers and Billikens bear a striking resemblance - both teams head into Friday's contest with a .500 record. St. Louis evened its record at 2-2 with a 2-0 win over Iowa on Tuesday. Memphis improved to 2-2-1 after downing Ole Miss, 1-0, on Monday.

Sunday, the Lady Tigers head north to Chicago for a 1 p.m. start against defending Conference USA Champion Marquette. Since losing their opener against Oakland, the Golden Eagles have reeled-off four-straight victories and are the strong favorites to repeat as C-USA champs.

Memphis is 0-6 all-time against Marquette, including a 7-4 loss to the Golden Eagles at Echles Field a year ago.

The Lady Tigers return home for a match with Vanderbilt on Wednesday, September 26, at Echles Field at 7 p.m.