Nov. 12, 2009
Complete Release in PDF Format 
COLLEGE STATION, Texas -
The No. 22 Texas A&M soccer team begins first round action of the 2009 NCAA Division I Championship against Memphis in Baton Rouge, La., on Friday. The Aggies make their 15th consecutive appearance in the tournament and kickoff at 4 p.m. at the LSU Soccer Complex.
This marks the first meeting between the two sides, the Aggies (14-6-2) earning an at-large bid after finishing second in the Big 12 regular season and tournament, and the Tigers (16-6) receiving an automatic berth after winning its third straight Conference USA tournament title.
Following A&M's match fourth-seeded and No. 10 LSU faces Arkansas-Pine-Bluff at 7 p.m.
The winners of the two matches meet in the second round on Sunday at 1 p.m.
The Aggies enter the NCAA Tournament after advancing to the finals of the Big 12 Tournament where it fell 1-0 to Oklahoma State. A&M saw a five-game unbeaten snapped, but is still 7-2-1 in its last 10 games. The Aggies are one of just two teams representing the Big 12 in the NCAA Championship.
Memphis upset the top two seeds in the C-USA Tournament, including No. 12 Central Florida, 3-0. The Tigers finished third in the conference and enter the first round match on a three-game winning streak. They are also one of a pair of teams that represent their conference.
FOLLOW THE ACTION
AggieAthletics.com will provide free live audio and live stats of the first and second round action. Each match will also be broadcast on KNDE-FM's HD3 channel, Play x REPlay (95.1-3 on the FM dial of an HD Radio), making it available worldwide on any iPhone, iPod Touch, Blackberry or PDA free of charge. Log on to radioaggieland.com for more information.
TICKETS
Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online at LSUsports.net/tickets. All-Session tickets are available for $10 for adults and $5 for students. Single-session tickets are $6 for adults, $3 for seniors and students and just $1 for youths ages 5 and under. Fans interested in purchasing group tickets of 10 or more are asked to contact the LSU Ticket Office at 225-578-2184. Orders will be available for pickup at Will Call as all seats at the LSU Soccer Complex are general admission. The LSU Soccer Ticket Office opens 1.5 hours prior to the first game of each session.
PARKING
Free parking is available in Lot W, adjacent to the LSU Soccer Complex. Due to LSU's home football game, there will be no public parking for Saturday's practice session. Click here for a parking map.
A&M IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
The Aggies are 23-14-1 in 15 straight NCAA Tournament appearances. The run began in 1995, with the team making it as far as the Sweet 16 eight times and the Elite Eight on four occasions (2001, 02, 06, 08). A&M has only been knocked out in the first round twice (1996, 97).
This is the first time the Aggies have started the postseason on the road. Until this year, A&M has at least hosted the first and second rounds. The good news...the Aggies only need four wins to return home for the College Cup in Aggieland.
AGGIES LEAD THE BIG 12 TO POSTSEASON
Texas A&M boasts the most tournament appearances of any Big 12 program, making its 15th this year. Nebraska is the next closest with 10 NCAA berths and Oklahoma State, who joins the Aggies in the 2009 bracket, is making its fifth appearance.
A LOOK BACK
Texas A&M defeated Texas State (5-2), Washington (3-1) and Florida (2-1) to reach the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament last season before falling to the eventual national champion, UNC (2-1), in double overtime. The Aggies ended the year with the same preseason ranking they received in 2009 - No. 7 - by the NSCAA.
SCOUTING MEMPHIS
Memphis is making its third straight trip to the NCAA Tournament, but is 0-2 in the last two years. The Tigers lost 1-0 in double overtime to Illinois in 2008 and fell 1-0 to UNC-Greensboro in 2007. This season Tigers are 8-2 in their last 10 matches and post 12 shutouts on the year. Ashley Berra leads the team with 14 goals and eight assists for 36 points. Following Berra are two players with 14 points each. Goalkeeper Elis Kuhar-Pitters records a 0.81 goals against average and a .779 save percentage.
SCOUTING LSU
Similar to the Aggies, LSU (14-4-4) earned an at-large bid after finishing second in the Southeastern Conference regular season and tournament. The Tigers tied South Carolina in the SEC Tournament championship game before falling, 8-7, in penalty kicks. LSU is riding a five-game unbeaten streak and is 6-2-2 in its last 10 matches. The team is making its third straight tournament appearance and fell 3-2 in the first round last year to Washington in College Station. This marks the first time they compete as a national seed and host the first two rounds. Malorie Rutledge leads LSU with 10 goals and 12 assists for 32 points. Melissa Clarke is second with 11 goals and 26 points. Goalkeeper Mo Isom posts a 0.75 goals against average and a .821 save percentage.
SCOUTING ARKANSAS-PINE BLUFF
Arkansas-Pine Bluff (12-6-4) is making its first appearance in the tournament as an automatic qualifier from the Southwestern Athletic Conference. The Lady Lions defeated Prairie View A&M, 1-0, for the championship. The team is 9-1 in its last 10 games and has won three straight. UAPB records 10 shutouts. Jade West leads the squad with 11 goals and 10 assists for 32 points and Chelsea Klein has a 0.81 goals against average and .881 save percentage between the posts.
VERSUS THE FIELD
The Aggies meet each of its opponents this weekend for the first time in program history. A&M has played LSU in several exhibition matches over the last few years. This past spring the two teams played to a scoreless tie. In the spring of 2008, A&M earned a 1-0 win and in 2007 the Aggies came out on top, 2-0.
UP NEXT
The NCAA Tournament continues with third round action Nov. 20, 21 or 22. Should the Aggie advance, they will face top-seeded Florida State, Southeastern Louisiana, California or Auburn in the Sweet 16. Quarterfinal play continues on Nov. 27, 28 or 29 and the College Cup is set for Dec. 4 and 6 at the Aggie Soccer Stadium.
ALL-TOURNAMENT HONORS
The Aggies made a respectable run towards their 11th Big 12 Trophy, but did not come up empty handed in hardware. Junior Emily Peterson, junior Emily Peterson were selected to the ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District women's soccer teams. Both Aggie soccer players are finance majors and were named to the Academic All-District second team. Shipley carries a 3.693 grade point average and Peterson maintains a 3.921 GPA as a member of the Mays Business Honors program.
LOWE'S SENIOR CLASS AWARD DEADLINE APPROACHING
Peterson was selected as one of 10 finalists for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award and is on a ballot for a nationwide vote concluding November 13. Fans can vote for Peterson daily by going to http://www.seniorclassaward.com/vote/womens_soccer_2009/ or by texting W9 to 74567.
These votes will be combined with votes from coaches and media to determine the recipient of the award.