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Sept. 18 C-USA Men's Soccer Notebook
MSOC Notebook

	Bradlee Baladez, South Carolina

Sept. 18, 2012

IRVING, Texas – Conference USA teams will play eight non-conference matches this week as they prepare for the full slate of league play in a week’s time. C-USA teams have won nearly 60 percent of their non-conference games to date, boasting an impressive 15-6-3 (.688) road record.

Sept. 18 Men's Soccer Notebook

Tulsa and South Carolina will ease into the Conference USA schedule Friday in Tulsa, Okla. The two sides have played some of the most challenging schedules in the country.

South Carolina’s opponents have posted a combined record of 25-9-8 (.690), with three of those foes holding unbeaten marks. The Gamecocks’ schedule ranks as the seventh-toughest in the country according the latest Massey ratings. Four opponents were ranked by the NSCAA when the match was played, including two top five opponents.

Tulsa boasts the 23^rd-toughest strength of schedule. The Golden Hurricane has faced three NSCAA top 15 opponents and two that were ranked in the top four. TU handed then-No.3 New Mexico its only loss of the season.

TOUGH SCHEDULES

According the most recent Massey Ratings, five C-USA teams have played top-28 strength of schedules this season – more than any league in the country. The Massey Ratings currently rank C-USA as the third-best conference in its power rating.

Team - SOS

South Carolina – 7

UAB – 19

Kentucky – 21

Tulsa – 23

SMU – 28

STILL UNBEATEN

Marshall won two games last week to improve to 6-0-1 for the season. The seven-game unbeaten streak equals the program’s longest unbeaten stretch to start a season (2010: 5-0-2). Last season, Marshall put together an eight-match unbeaten streak (7-1-0). The school record unbeaten streak is nine matches (9-0-0) set in 1997.

HOBSS NAMED SENIOR CLASS CANDIDATE

FIU senior defender Anthony Hobbs was named as one of 30 men’s soccer finalists for the 2012 Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas – community, classroom, character and competition.

This week’s schedule

Tuesday, September 18

Clemson at South Carolina 6 p.m.

Wednesday, September 19

ETSU at Kentucky 12 p.m.

Thursday, September 20

CSU Bakersfield at SMU 7 p.m.

Friday, September 21

*South Carolina at (RV) Tulsa 7 p.m.

Saturday, September 22

FIU at Stetson 5 p.m.

Kentucky at Evansville 6 p.m.