Marquette University Athletics
Women's Soccer Faces Tough Slate in 2002
7/15/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
July 15, 2002
MILWAUKEE - Three tough tournaments, a match against 16-time national champion North Carolina and the always-tough Conference USA opponents fill the Marquette schedule for the 2002 season. In all, head coach Markus Roeders has scheduled matches with six NCAA Tournament teams from last season.
"We have put together one of the most challenging schedules in the history of our program," Roeders said. "Our non-conference schedule is loaded with NCAA Tournament caliber teams, which should prepare us well for the stiff competition within Conference USA."
MU will get its first tough test early in the season as part of the Verizon Milwaukee Cup. The tournament, co-hosted by Marquette and Wis.-Milwaukee, begins the season for the Golden Eagles. After Wis.-Milwaukee tangles with Oakland on Aug. 30 at Valley Fields, Marquette and Ohio square off. The action moves to Engelmann Field on the UWM campus on Sept. 1. Marquette meets Oakland before UWM plays Ohio.
Marquette then travels to Dayton, Ohio, for the Marriott/Dayton Flyers Invitational. MU will meet Ohio State on Sept. 6 and will battle with Dayton, an NCAA round of 16 squad last year, on Sept. 8.
The Golden Eagles return home on Sept. 13 to take on Rhode Island for its second straight match with an Atlantic 10 team. Then MU has its first test of the season against an in-state rival, taking on Wisconsin at Valley Fields on Sept. 17. The Golden Eagles host Wis.-Milwaukee later in the season as well.
"We are excited to host our traditional in-state rivals at Valley Fields," Roeders said. "These games are always fun for the players, fans and coaches, and usually take on championship game type quality."
Following Wisconsin, Marquette will face a challenge tougher than it has ever faced. The Golden Eagles head to Durham, N.C., to take part in the Duke adidas Classic. Marquette squares off with last year's NCAA runner up, North Carolina, in the opening match of the tournament on Sept. 20. MU has an equally tough challenge to follow up that contest with a Sept. 22 match at Duke.
"Our team will measure itself against the most storied collegiate women's soccer program in the country - North Carolina," Roeders added. "North Carolina is a favorite to compete for the national title again this year, so we will be measuring ourselves against the best. Duke is a traditional NCAA Tournament team, an outstanding second opponent for that weekend."
After concluding its third tournament of the year, MU opens Conference USA play and stays within the conference for the next nine matches. The Golden Eagles start the C-USA season with home matches against Tulane on Sept. 27 and Southern Miss on Sept. 29.
Four straight C-USA road matches await MU after Southern Miss. Marquette visits UAB on Oct. 2, South Florida on Oct. 4, Charlotte on Oct. 11 and Saint Louis on Oct. 13.
MU concludes a daunting portion of the schedule meeting Cincinnati in a rematch of the Conference USA championship match at Valley Fields on Nov. 10, 2001. Marquette is looking for revenge after the 1-0 loss in the C-USA final. Both teams were NCAA Tournament teams last year and Cincinnati advanced to the round of 16. A hard-fought, highly-competitive match is expected.
"Our conference is getting tougher every year and this season should be no different," Roeders said. "The travel portion of our conference schedule will put extra demands on our team, but we feel that our non- conference games will prepare us well."
The stretch run of Conference USA season begins on Oct. 20 with a home contest against Louisville. The Golden Eagles head for their last C-USA road match of the year on Oct. 25 at East Carolina.
Traditional rivals meet again at Valley Fields as the Golden Eagles host Wis.-Milwaukee on Oct. 27. Both teams advanced to the NCAA Tournament last year and should be battling positioning for the NCAA Tournament when this match arrives.
The Golden Eagles hit the road for their final regular season road test at a tough Vanderbilt squad from the SEC. That match is scheduled for Oct. 30. MU concludes the C-USA slate and the regular season with a match against DePaul at Valley Fields at 6 p.m.
Charlotte is the host for the 2002 Conference USA Tournament, scheduled for Nov. 6-9. Marquette has advanced to the final of the C-USA Tournament each of the last four years. The NCAA Tournament begins on Nov. 15-17 with the first and second rounds at campus sites. Marquette has participated in each of the last three NCAA Tournaments. The NCAAs continue on Nov. 22-24 with the third rounds at campus sites. The fourth round is scheduled for Nov. 29-Dec. 1. The NCAA Women's College Cup is scheduled for Dec. 6 and 8 at Mike A. Myers Stadium and Soccer Field on the campus of the University of Texas in Austin.
2002 Marquette Women's Soccer Schedule
Aug. 30-Sept. 1 Verizon Milwaukee CupAug. 30 Ohio Valley Fields 8:15 p.m.Sept. 1 vs. Oakland Milwaukee, Wis. ^ noon Sept. 6-8 Marriott/Dayton Flyers InvitationalSept. 6 vs. Ohio State Dayton, Ohio 6 p.m. EDTSept. 8 at Dayton Dayton, Ohio noon EDTSept. 13 Rhode Island Valley Fields 7 p.m.Sept. 17 Wisconsin Valley Fields 7 p.m. Sept. 20-22 Duke adidas ClassicSept. 20 vs. North Carolina Durham, N.C. 5 p.m. EDTSept. 22 at Duke Durham, N.C. 2:30 p.m. EDTSept. 27 Tulane * Valley Fields 7 p.m.Sept. 29 Southern Miss * Valley Fields 1 p.m.Oct. 2 at UAB * Birmingham, Ala. 7 p.m.Oct. 4 at South Florida * Tampa, Fla. 7 p.m. EDTOct. 11 at Charlotte * Charlotte, N.C. 7 p.m. EDTOct. 13 at Saint Louis * St. Louis, Mo. 1 p.m.Oct. 18 Cincinnati * Valley Fields 7 p.m.Oct. 20 Louisville * Valley Fields noonOct. 25 at East Carolina * Greenville, N.C. 2 p.m. EDTOct. 27 Wis.-Milwaukee Valley Fields 5 p.m.Oct. 30 at Vanderbilt Nashville, Tenn. 7 p.m.Nov. 2 DePaul * Valley Fields 6 p.m.Nov. 6-9 C-USA Tournament Charlotte, N.C.Nov. 15 NCAA First Round Campus SitesNov. 17 NCAA Second Round Campus SitesNov. 22-24 NCAA Third Round Campus SitesNov. 29-Dec. 1 NCAA Fourth Round Campus SitesDec. 6 NCAA College Cup Austin, TexasDec. 8 NCAA College Cup Austin, Texas
All times Central unless other wise indicated and are subject to change.* Denotes C-USA Match ^ at Engelmann Field, Wis.-Milwaukee CampusHome matches are played at Valley Fields.
