Soccer Watch

If you're going to just one Lady Longhorn game this season, it might as well be Friday night against the University of Portland, No. 4 in the country and fresh off a 5-1 win over No. 11 Wisconsin. The Pilots are the best team by far that'll be coming to Myers Stadium this year, and Canadian National Team star Christine Sinclair might well be the best player in the NCAA. Friday, Sept. 16, 7:30pm. Then the Rice Owls come in on Sunday evening, also at 7:30… The Horns moved into the top 25 in all the national rankings last week, then dropped a tight road game at undefeated BYU Monday night, 1-0.

The European Champions League kicked off this week: 32 teams meeting in league play that continues through December. The big news this week: the continuing distress of Real Madrid's Galacticos. With no major trophies to show for their several years of collecting the biggest individual stars in the soccer universe, Madrid opened their Champs League campaign with a dismal 3-0 drubbing by French champions Lyon, who (though they're very, very good) don't have a single player you've ever heard of. Gotta love it. Elsewhere, all four Italian teams won, as did England's Arsenal, Chelsea, and defending champs Liverpool. Full results are at "Soccer Watch Online."