University of Minnesota Athletics
Soccer Announces Spring Schedule
1/13/2009 12:00:00 AM | Soccer
The reigning Big Ten regular season champion University of Minnesota women’s soccer program will play, among others, fellow 2008 Sweet Sixteen qualifier USC and Big XII champion Missouri during their 2009 spring schedule. Minnesota Soccer’s 2009 spring schedule, released today, culminates with the Minnesota Spring Classic at Elizabeth Lyle Robbie Stadium in St. Paul.
The Gophers open their spring slate with a trip to Los Angeles, Calif. in late February. The Gophers will take on the 2007 NCAA champion Trojans on Saturday, Feb. 28 before traveling across town to battle Loyola-Marymount on Sunday, Mar. 1. USC finished the 2008 season with a 16-5-2 record and ranked eighth nationally in the final NSCAA/adidas coaches poll. Loyola-Marymount pieced together a solid 10-6-3 record this fall, finishing third in the West Coast Conference behind only perennial national power Portland and San Diego.
Minnesota meets Missouri in a Mar. 8 contest at a neutral field in Kansas City, Mo. The Tigers were champions of the Big 12 and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2008. The Gophers will travel to Ames, Iowa to take on Iowa State in their final road contest of the spring season on Apr. 4. The Cyclones return 10 starters and 83% of their scoring in 2009.
The Minnesota Spring Classic on Apr. 18 at Elizabeth Lyle Robbie Stadium will mark the conclusion of the spring season. The Gophers will host Nebraska, which returns its top four scorers from a team that went 10-8-1 this fall, and Drake, which returns its top three scorers from a year ago. The Cornhuskers and Bulldogs will each meet North Dakota State at the Spring Classic as well.
Click here to view the Gophers' full 2009 spring schedule.
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