Murray State University Athletics
Racers Looking For 3-0 Start Friday Against IUPUI
9/4/2003 5:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
The Racers, 2-0 after last week's wins over Southwest Missouri (2-1) and Western Illinois (4-0), are looking to match last year's 3-0 start, the best start in the program's short three-year history.
"The big key for us is staying focused and being ready to play every game out," said fourth-year MSU head coach Mike Minielli. "Last season, we struggled with that, but we've done a good job with it in our first two games this year. Now, we've got to show that we can continue to do it this weekend."
IUPUI (0-1) enters Friday's game 0-1 after a 6-2 season-opening loss at Loyola University Chicago on Aug. 31. The Jaguars are coached by Chris Johnson, who played for Minielli during his tenure as head coach at St. Joseph's College.
"We haven't played IUPUI in a couple of years, so it should be a good test for us," Minielli said. "Chris Johnson is in his first season there, and they've added a lot of new players, so we'd better be ready to play."
The Racers plan on welcoming back three players from injury as Minielli hopes to get junior midfielders Abby Baden and Lauren McAdams, and junior forward Kristin Robertson a few good minutes in Friday's game. Baden and McAdams sat out the 2002 season with medical redshirts, while Robertson is recovering from an ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) injury in the spring.
"Hopefully, we can get all three of them in there Friday and get some good minutes for them," Minielli said. "We don't want to push them to hard, but we do want to get them back in the flow of the game as soon as possible."
Following Friday's game, MSU will take to the road to battle regional rival Western Kentucky on Sunday at 7 p.m. in Bowling Green, Ky.
