Soccer Watch

The UT Lady Longhorns open their season this Friday with a No. 9 national ranking and even higher aspirations. It's a veteran team, with four senior starters plus four juniors who are three-year starters on a defense that could be scary good, and what's said to be a very talented recruiting class (the Horns used eight newcomers – six freshmen and two transfers – in their exhibition game at New Mexico last Friday). The Horns host TCU at Myers Stad­ium, Friday, Aug. 31, 7pm ($6; $3 with online coupon). The Horned Toadettes should be a pretty good test; a sterner one will come two days later in Houston, as the Horns take on third-ranked UCLA.

The St. Edward's men open conference play at home against Incarnate Word, Sunday, Sept. 2, 1pm; the women are on the road at Stephen F. Austin.

The U.S. Women arrived in China Tuesday for the 2007 Women's World Cup, fresh from a 4-0 romp over Fin­land to end their warm-up campaign. The WWC kicks off Sept. 10; full schedule and more online.

The Champions League qualifying rounds ended Wed­nes­day, with only one major upset: Ajax Amster­dam, beaten 3-1 on aggregate by Slavia Prague.

The U.S. finally won a game at the U-17 World Cup, beating Belgium, 2-0, on Sunday in Korea. That puts them in a Round of 16 match Thursday against Germany. The quarterfinals are Saturday-Sunday, semis midweek, and the final next Sunday, Sept. 9.