Women's soccer team eager to surpass expectations

Adam F. Jarrold Arizona Daily Wildcat UA soccer head coach Lisa Fraser speaks with reporters yesterday about her expectations for the upcoming season during media day at Murphy Stadium.

"I'm really excited to play to see where our level of play is," UA junior forward Nikki Jones said.

With two matches on the road - against Arkansas tomorrow at 5 p.m. and Monday at Tulsa at 9 a.m. - their inexperience will be put to the test.æ

"We are ready to take on Arkansas and Tulsa. They are good teams, (but) not great teams," UA head coach Lisa Fraser said.

The Razorbacks had an overall record of 11-7-3 compared to the 5-13-1 record Arizona finished with.

The Razorbacks return leading scorer, junior forward Brittany Burns, who racked up 12 goals and 8 assists last season. Junior Angie Rigsby, who finished with 10 goals and 6 assists, will join Burns to challange Arizona's newly formed defense.

"We have strong players all around. This weekend will be a big test for us," UA junior defender Kate Mattson said.

The backfield is an area where the two squads are closely matched because of their inexperience. The Razorbacks' junior goalkeeper, Sarah Webb, finished last season with only 17 minutes of play, while Arizona starts freshman Inger Airheart.

"This will be a good game, our team is ready to play this weekend," Airheart said.

Tulsa will also provide a fierce matchup for the Wildcats. The Golden Hurricane finished the 1996 season with an overall mark of 11-6-3 earning the No. 8 slot in the Central Region.

Arizona's offense will face a stiff test against Tulsa's senior goalkeeper Melissa Mitchell, who earned a goals-against average of 1.36 while shutting out seven of her opponents during the 1996 season.

"We will be playing a possession game with some long balls," Jones said.

"We have been competing well in a great preseason," said Fraser. "They (the players) are finally ready to play a real game."