Soccer Watch
Last chance to catch the Aztex in action this year and more
By Nick Barbaro, Fri., Oct. 2, 2009
The UT Longhorns opened Big 12 play with a win and a draw on the road, beating Oklahoma, 2-1, and tying Baylor, 0-0. The Big 12 has taken its lumps thus far, with only No. 16 Texas A&M (6-4) currently ranked in the Top 25 nationally. This week the Horns face a tough home doubleheader: Missouri (7pm Friday, Oct. 2; two tickets for the price of one) was a preseason co-favorite to win the conference and was ranked 13th in the nation; Kansas (1pm Sunday, Oct. 4; $3 Web coupon) has gotten less respect but has a gaudy 8-2-1 record coming in. Mike A. Myers Track and Soccer Stadium, 707 Clyde Littlefield Dr.
The St. Edward's women rose to 12th in the country after opening conference play last week with road wins over UT-Permian Basin and Dallas Baptist; they're on the road again this weekend.
The U.S. has had mixed success in the FIFA Under-20 World Cup – bouncing back from an 0-3 loss to Germany to dominate Cameroon 4-1 on Tuesday. They finish group play needing a draw against South Korea (11:45am Friday, Oct. 2, ESPN2), to advance to the knockout stage, coming up Oct. 5-16 (also on ESPN2).
As we go to press, Mexican clubs lead each of the four groups in the CONCACAF Champions League, with the three MLS clubs scrambling for the remaining spots in the knockout round, and the USL's Puerto Rico Islanders out of contention.
In the first round of the USL-1 playoffs, the Vancouver Whitecaps upset second-seeded Carolina and will face regular season champs Portland Timbers in one semifinal. On the other side of the draw, the Puerto Rico Islanders edged Rochester, and fifth-seeded Montreal Impact swept Charleston. The semifinals are this Thursday and Sunday, with the two-legged final Oct. 10 & 17.
KOOP Radio 91.7FM will begin airing Fútbol en Vivo on Tuesdays, 1-2pm, a bilingual soccer program with the first half-hour in Spanish and the second in English.
