TicketsAug. 13, 2009
CINCINNATI - The University of Cincinnati women's soccer team begins its 2009 season with an exhibition match at Illinois on Friday, August 14. The Bearcats will play the Fighting Illini at 5 p.m. EST at the Illinois Soccer and Track Stadium.
Head coach Michelle Salmon, in her second season at UC, has a deeper roster and the advantage of players experienced with her system of play. UC returns seven starters and 14 letterwinners from the 2008 team that finished the season with a 10-7-3 overall record, its best record since the 2002 season. The Bearcats add eight talented newcomers to the 2009 roster and look to build on last year's success, which included qualifying for the BIG EAST Tournament for the first time in program history.
Cincinnati seniors Erin MacDonald (St. Catharine's, Ont. /West Park Secondary), Melissa Bigg (Limehouse, Ont. /Acton), and Andrea Kaminski (Noblesville, Ind./Noblesville), as well as junior Sydney Barker (Roswell, Ga./Roswell), captain the 2009 squad. Additionally, sophomore Julie Morrissey (Abington, Mass./Tabor Academy) returns after leading the 2008 team in total points with 16 points (7G, 2A).
Illinois returns 14 letterwinners and eight starters from a squad that advanced to the third round of the 2008 NCAA Championship.
Cincinnati will play only one exhibition game in 2009 and kicks off regular season action next Friday, Aug. 21, at Kentucky in a 7 p.m. match.