Aug. 13, 2010
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - The preseason No. 8 nationally-ranked Texas A&M soccer team hosts Rice in its first and only exhibition match of the 2010 season on Saturday, Aug. 14 at 7:30 p.m. at the Aggie Soccer Stadium.
The Aggies, who return 11 starters and 19 letterwinners from last year's NCAA Sweet 16 squad, were picked to finish first in the Big 12 Soccer Preseason Poll. The team is led by eight seniors including preseason All-Big 12 selections Rachel Shipley and Whitney Hooper, and junior Bri Young. Shipley was also named to the MAC's Hermann Trophy Watch List. A&M boasts three newcomers, including UNC junior transfer Merritt Mathias.
"Saturday will be an excellent opportunity for our team to come together and take what we've been working on in preseason and put it into action against a real opponent," said A&M soccer head coach G Guerrieri. "It is also a great chance for our fans to get a sneak peak at what's sure to be an exciting Aggie soccer team."
The exhibition game serves as the only chance to see the Aggies before their season opener against No. 1 and back-to-back national champion North Carolina on Friday, Aug. 20 at 7:30 p.m. at the Aggie Soccer Stadium.
The Owls return five starters and welcome nine newcomers to a team that is coming off of a 6-10-3 overall campaign in 2009. Head Coach Chris Huston holds an 88-74-13 record in nine seasons at the helm of Rice soccer.
Tickets for the exhibition match can be purchased online at tickets.12thmanfoundation.com or by calling 1-888-99-AGGIE.
Fans can follow all of the action Saturday with free live video, audio and live stats on AggieAthletics.com. The audio broadcast can also be heard on Candy 95.1 HD3 Play by Replay channel and on RadioAggieland.com, making the game available on an iPhone, Blackberry or PDA free of charge.