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Sea-Hawks Weekly Preview

Ryan Yetman (Sept. 10th, 2009) It is the first week of classes at Memorial University and the Sea~Hawk soccer teams are wasting no time as they travel to take on Mount Allison and Moncton in a weekend road trip to open the 2009 AUS soccer season.

Both the men’s and women’s teams have been busy this week with team tryouts and fitness testing in preparation of the weekend’s action in Sackville and Moncton. The teams will play Saturday against Mount Allison and Sunday against the Université de Moncton.

Women’s Soccer
The women’s soccer team will have the majority it’s 2008 AUS roster in the lineup this weekend. Leading the team once again will be three-time All-Canadian Laura Breen. Two-time All-Canadian Malorie Harris will also be active for the Memorial attack. The team will look to continue to put up big numbers on offense as they work towards claiming Memorial’s first AUS championship at King George Vth Park in November. The road to the AUS championship starts this weekend.

The team will have a number of fresh faces in the lineup. Several Canada Games athletes will be joining the team this year including keeper Keira Eavis, who had an excellent tournament in Charlottetown. Other Canada Games athletes making their debut this weekend include Erin Edwards, Lauren Windsor, Heather Williams, and Paula Whitten.

The first game of the season will take place in Sackville on Saturday at 1 p.m. The matchup on paper appears to be one-sided as Memorial finished last season 9-2-2 while Mount Allison was winless at 0-9-4. However, in the competitive AUS there are no weekends off. Last season the Sea~Hawks shut out Mount Allison at King George Vth in the only two games between the teams. Leslie Pope, now in her fifth and final year of eligibility, scored two goals in the series. Sophomore forward Kailey Bower returns to the Mounties lineup this season after scoring a team-high 3 goals in 2008.

The Université de Moncton Aigles Bleues will bring an improved team to the pitch on Sunday in Moncton at 1 p.m. Last season Moncton finished 3-7-3, including a pair of losses to Memorial in St. John’s by scores of 5-0 and 7-0. 2008 conference MVP Breen notched 4 of her AUS leading 9 goals against Moncton. Sophomore Santana Wedge led the Moncton attack last season with 3 goals.

Men’s Soccer
The Memorial men’s soccer team will also open their season against Mount Allison and Moncton. The team will look to improve upon last season’s 2-7-4 record. Team captain Ryan Yetman will once again provide the leadership to a roster that has more stability this season than in the recent past. Other returning players in the lineup this weekend include Zach Wade, Collin Power, Jeff Slaney, Corey Moore, Blaise Peters, and Chris Pope.

Much like the women’s team, the men will be welcoming a number of Canada Games athletes to the roster this season, including Matthew Hamlyn, Matthew Breen and Scott Woodfine.

The first game of the year will be in Mount Allison on Saturday at 3:15 p.m. Last season the Mounties and the Sea~Hawks split a weekend series in St. John’s, with Memorial putting up a season high 5 goals in their win. The Mounties finished last season one point ahead of Memorial in the AUS regular season standings with a record of 4-8-1. Iain MacLeod from Mount Pearl will be playing in his fifth year for the Mounties. Both teams will look to show that they belong in the playoff hunt in the AUS with an opening day victory.

The Sea~Hawks will then travel to play the Aigles Bleus in Moncton on Sunday at 3:15 p.m. Last year the teams split a weekend series in St. John’s to close out their 2008 regular seasons. Moncton led the AUS in scoring last season, finishing with a 5-3-5 record. Forward Maxime Ferlatte notched a league high 10 goals in 2008. The stingy Memorial defense will be tested by the high power Moncton offense on Sunday.