June 10, 2008

Schedule

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The UAB women's soccer team will play 20 games during the 2008 season, including nine home matches, announced head coach Paul Harbin.

The Blazers will kick off their campaign on Aug. 22 at Clemson. A trip to in-state foe Auburn is on the slate for Aug. 24 before UAB plays its home opener on Aug. 29 by hosting South Florida.

UAB will travel to take on Kansas and Nebraska on Sept. 5 and Sept. 7, respectively. Kansas will be a first-time opponent for the Blazers, while Nebraska has played the Blazers twice in the past, most recently in 2005.

"We are taking on some of the top teams in the top conferences in the nation in our first five games," said UAB head coach Paul Harbin. "It's a demanding start to the season, but it's also one of those schedules that lets you know where you are from the beginning.

"The key is to be prepared as quickly as possible in preseason. But, the nice thing is, we will know our strengths and we will know our weaknesses by the end of the third week of the season."

After a year hiatus, UAB will once again host its UAB Nike Classic beginning Sept. 12. The Blazers will face Wright State and cross-town foe Samford in the tournament.

"The schedule doesn't get any easier throughout the season," said Harbin. "Wright State is a quality program out of the Midwest and is an exciting matchup for us.

"Samford is one of the top teams in the Southeast region. Last year, it was an extremely competitive match at Samford and I think it is one of those cross-town rivalries that is going to continue to get better."

To round out its non-conference schedule, UAB will spend a weekend in Nashville, Tenn. The Blazers will battle Belmont on Sept. 19, followed by a match at Vanderbilt on Sept. 21.

"Belmont has moved into a position as one of the top teams in its conference in the last few years," said Harbin. "Vanderbilt is another very good SEC team and it is always a battle when we play them.

"We really worked hard to put together a nationally-competitive, non-conference schedule that will prepare us for Conference USA."

The always-challenging Conference USA schedule will begin for the Blazers on Sept. 26 when they host UCF. UAB also plays a home match against Southern Miss on Sept. 28.

UAB will travel west to take on Colorado College and UTEP the first weekend of October before returning to Birmingham to host Rice and Houston on Oct. 10 and 12.

The Blazers will continue their league slate at Tulsa and SMU on Oct. 17 and 19, followed by a home game versus East Carolina on Oct. 24. UAB's final road game will be played at Marshall on Oct. 26 and the Blazers will conclude their regular season by hosting Memphis on Oct. 30.

"Conference USA has turned into one of those leagues that is eight or nine teams deep in terms of the games where you just don't know what is going to happen and teams that are good enough to win the conference," said Harbin. "There are probably seven legitimate teams in C-USA that are capable of playing in the NCAA Tournament. We won't get that many teams in, but that is how competitive this conference is."

The Conference USA Tournament will be held in Houston, Texas, beginning with the opening round on Nov. 5 and concluding with the championship match on Nov. 9.