August 05, 2008
COLLEGE STATION, Texas- The 2008 Texas A&M soccer team reports to campus on Tuesday and begins its first practice session Wednesday morning at 10 a.m. The Aggies hold two practices on Wednesday and Friday (10 a.m. and 7:30 p.m.) and a single session on Thursday at 10 a.m. Both evening sessions are open to the public.
“We are all looking forward to kicking off the new season,” A&M head coach G Guerrieri said. “With so many new faces on our team this year, I’m not really sure what to expect for the first training session other than there will be loads of energy and lots of great players who are excited to be representing Texas A&M on the soccer field this season.”
A&M returns six starters and 12 letterwinners from a 2007 squad that went 18-4-2 overall and 9-1-0 in league play and captured its fourth-straight Big 12 regular season title. Last season’s conference championship marks A&M’s 10th in the league’s 12 seasons. The Ags entered the postseason ranked No. 2 and earned their 13th consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament. The 2008 squad also adds a top-10 recruiting class made up of 12 talented newcomers.
In preparing to defend its fourth Big 12 title, the Aggies have one of the nation’s toughest non-conference schedules, facing four teams that advanced to the 2007 NCAA Tournament and two that advanced to the “Sweet Sixteen.”
The first week of A&M’s preseason training closes with “Aggie Soccer 101” at 4 p.m. on Saturday followed by the Maroon vs. White game at 7:30 p.m. at the Aggie Soccer Stadium.