Sept. 23, 2003
Mizzou Opens Big 12 Conference Season
The Mizzou soccer team opens the 2003 Big 12 Conference season on the road this weekend. The Tigers are scheduled to take on No. 17 ranked Colorado in Boulder on Fri., Sept. 26 at 4:00 p.m. Missouri then travels to Lincoln, Neb., to face the No. 21 ranked Cornhuskers on Sun., Sept. 28 at 1:00 p.m.
Mizzou welcomes a three-week home stand during the first three weeks of October. The Tigers bring California, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Kansas, Texas A&M and Texas to Audrey J. Walton Soccer Stadium.
Scouting #17 Colorado
The Buffaloes have emerged this season as a force to be reckoned with. After finishing with a 10-8-2 record last year, the Buffs are topping the nation with a 6-1 record during 2003 non-conference play. Colorado has faced two top-25 programs this season, falling to then #2 Portland 1-0 and defeating then #9 ranked Denver 3-0.
The Buffs' show great depth in their scoring ability as various athletes across the board have contributed both goals and assists on the year. Scoring leader Fran Munnelly owns three goals and two assists for eight points. Katie Griffin trails her with three goals and one assist for seven points.
Jessica Keller stands out in the goalbox for Colorado. Playing in five games, she has allowed just one goal and made 12 saves for a .22 goals against average. She is 5-0 on the year.
Missouri leads the MU-CU series with a slim 4-3-1 margin. The Tigers look to improve their record against a team that finished seventh in the Big 12 last year with a 4-5 league record.
Scouting #21 Nebraska
After opening the 2003 season ranked 12th, the Cornhuskers have fallen out of the NSCAA/adidas poll, but comes in ranked 21st by SoccerTimes.com. Nebraska is 5-2-1 on the year with loses to #1 ranked North Carolina (6-0) and #14 Duke (3-1).
Paralleling Missouri, the Cornhuskers battled Mississippi State in a close match. Missouri dominated MSU with a 24-to-8 shot differential, likewise Nebraska outshot the Bulldogs 22-to-6. The Cornhuskers however managed to eek out a 1-0 victory over Mississippi State, while the Tigers fell 1-0 in the final minutes of the game.
Missouri is still looking for its first victory over Nebraska. The Cornhuskers lead the series 10-0.
Broadcast Information
The Missouri-Nebraska game will be carried on KRNU 90.3, the student station in Lincoln, and will be webcast live from www.huskers.com. Live stats will also be available on the Husker website.
Eyeing the Tigers
Missouri joins the fray toting a 5-3-0 record, including two shutout victories, entering the Big 12 Conference season. The Tigers split its last pair of games defeating Eastern Illinois 3-2 in sudden death overtime before falling to No. 5 ranked Florida 4-0 in Gainesville, Fla., on Sunday.
Missouri in the Big 12
? The Tigers are ranked fifth in the league in shots taken (15.88 per game) and assists (8).
? Missouri is tied for sixth scoring 14 goals and 41points.
? The Tiger goalkeepers have made 48 saves to tie for second in the league.
Tiger Tidbits
? Missouri opened the year with a 4-0 win streak marking just the second time in program history the Tigers have gone undefeated during its season introduction - Mizzou opened the 2000 season with five consecutive victories before taking a loss.
? The Tigers remain undefeated at home taking four consecutive victories in Audrey J. Walton Stadium, including two games to win the 2003 Nike Tiger Invitational.
** For a complete set of notes, please download the Weekley Release from the main Missouri Soccer page. You will need Adobe Acrobat to access the file.