Blue Raiders start the road to C-USA Championship

Wednesday, November 5

Charlotte, N.C.

6:00 p.m.

Middle Tennessee

No. 4 Charlotte

11/4/2014 11:14:00 AM | Women's Soccer

MT faces No. 4 Charlotte in first game

By: @MTAthletics

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MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - Middle Tennessee is set for its first appearance in the C-USA Women's Soccer Championship as the team goes in as the No. 5 seed and face host school No. 4 Charlotte in the first round of the tournament on Wednesday, November 5 at 6 p.m. CT.

North Texas took the regular season crown and claimed the top-seed, while Rice (2), UTEP (3), LA Tech (6), WKU (7) and Marshall (8) also made the championship.

MT has played five of the seven other teams in this year's championship and are 2-3 against them with a win against the Lady Techsters and Marshall during the regular season.

Middle Tennessee landed three players on the all-conference list with Grace Summers and Angie Lai earning third team all-conference and Peyton McCollum grabbing a spot on C-USA's All-Freshmen team.

BLUE RAIDER BULLET POINTS
• MT has only played Charlotte twice in program history as the Blue Raiders and the 49ers played to a 2-2 draw last year and MT fell 2-0 to Charlotte last week.
• Head Coach Aston Rhoden is 8-12 at the helm of the Blue Raiders in conference tournament action. The Blue Raiders are 2-2 when going to penalty kicks in tournament play in the Rhoden era.
• The Blue Raiders won the Sun Belt Championship in 2010 after taking Western Kentucky to penalty kicks in the semifinal and No. 15 Denver to penalty kicks in the final. MT defeated the top-seeded Denver 3-2 in pks.
• In their last three tournament appearances the Blue Raiders have scored 14 goals in six games.
• Since the 2000 season Middle Tennessee has been the No. 5 seed three times and have yet to defeat the four-seed.
• Eleven of the Blue Raiders 18 goals this season have come against Conference USA opponents. In C-USA games MT ranks tied for fifth in the league in goals scored.
• This will be the first time 13 of the Blue Raiders have the opportunity to play in the postseason with five of those players being starters.
• Middle Tennessee has won four of its last six games and is 5-2-1 in its last eight games. In those eight games the Blue Raiders have scored 11 goals.
• The 49ers redshirt senior Jennifer Lee hails from Oak Ridge, Tenn. and played for the same high school as freshmen Alex Gonzalez and Peyton McCollum.
• The Blue Raiders freshmen are putting together a strong first season in collegiate soccer with three of them starting regularly with Kathy Thomas on the backline, Cameron Cox in the center midfield and McCollum playing up top. McCollum has two goals and an assist while Thomas added a goal this season.
• Angie Lai is hitting full stride to close the season as she has scored a goal in Middle Tennessee's in three of the Blue Raiders last four games and has been a part of four of MT's last five goals.
• Lai has had a hand in seven of the Blue Raiders goals this season with four goals and three assists. With four goals this year, Lai has the second-most goals for the Blue Raiders this season only behind Grace Summers with five.
• Kelsey Brouwer ranks top-five in the program in career saves (207), Wins (22), shutouts (17), games played (47), save percentage (.793), ties (6) and starts (46).
• This season Brouwer has collected 86 saves and recorded 7 shutouts. Her seven shutouts ties a MT program record she set in 2013.
• Brouwer's 86 saves is the most she's made in a single season as she currently ranks third in C-USA in total saves
• Tori Hawkins leads the Blue Raiders this season in assists with five and total shots with 40. Hawkins has three assists in conference play which ranks tied for sixth in the league. All five of Hawkins' assists this season have come in MT victories.