Aug. 13, 2001

NKU TO MEET XAVIER THIS SUNDAY

Norse face Division I Musketeers in exhibition match

HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - The Northern Kentucky University women’s soccer team will play host to Xavier University in an exhibition match at 8:30 p.m. this Sunday (Aug. 19) at the Town & Country Sports Complex in Wilder, Ky. NKU posted a 21-2-2 record last season and finished as the NCAA Division II national runner-up. The Norse also finished with a No. 2 national ranking, the best in the program’s four-year history. NKU returns nine starters, including seven seniors who have been in the lineup for three years. NKU also brought in a pair of top-notch recruits as it attempts to win its fourth consecutive Great Lakes Valley Conference championship and earn its third straight berth in the NCAA Division II Final Four. The Norse return NCAA Division II first team All-Americans Betsy Moore and Tricia Ruark to the lineup in 2001. Moore, a senior forward and a graduate of McAuley High School in Cincinnati, enters her final season as NKU’s all-time career leader in goals with 52. She also ranks No. 2 in school history with 31 assists. A year ago, Moore scored a team-leading 15 goals. Ruark, a senior midfielder and a graduate of Seton High School in Cincinnati, earned GLVC Player of the Year honors last season after scoring 11 goals and recording 20 assists. Xavier posted a 14-7-1 record last season and placed first in the Atlantic 10 with an 8-1-1 mark. The Musketeers return seven starters from that team. NKU will begin the regular season Aug. 24 at 4 p.m. against Northwood (Mich.) University in a match that will be played at University Center, Mich.