Oct. 6, 2006

ORLANDO - The Memphis women's soccer team picked up a huge win Friday night when junior defender Halley Jo Sullivan knocked a free kick off of an opposing defender with one minute remaining to give the Lady Tigers a 2-1 win over Conference USA opponent Central Florida.

Memphis (6-4-2, 2-0-1 C-USA) remains undefeated through three conference matches after handing UCF (6-5-1, 2-1 C-USA) its first loss in conference play.

"It really was a great back and forth game," said Memphis head coach Brooks Monaghan. "Both teams created enough chances to win, but things went our way. UCF is a good team, and this is a great win for us."

The Golden Knights struck first scoring on a penalty kick by Becca Thomas 18 minutes into the match, and had a 1-0 lead going into the half.

In the second half, Lady Tiger forward and reining C-USA Offensive Player of the Year Shoko Mikami evened the match, scoring point blank off of her own rebound. It was the Mikami's ninth goal of the season.

The rest of the game was a defensive struggle with both teams combining for only eight shots in the second half.

With just a minute and ten seconds remaining, UCF fouled Memphis just outside of the Golden Knights' box. Sullivan lofted up the free kick over the defensive wall and into the box where it bounced off the head of a UCF defender and into the net for the winning score.

"I'm really proud of the kids for battling back after being down early," Monaghan said. "We've been telling them that if they keep working hard good things will happen. Tonight the ball bounced our way, and it feels good to have that happen for a change."

Memphis is now one of only three C-USA teams that are still undefeated in conference play. A win Sunday at Southern Miss could put the Lady Tigers in good shape heading into their final five matches.

"The kids have to get refocused now and be ready for our next match," Monaghan said. "I told them that they had 10 minutes to be happy about tonight's win, and then they had to start thinking Southern Miss."

The Lady Tigers will take on Southern Miss at 1 p.m. Sunday in Hattiesburg, Miss.