MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - Memphis scored two quick goals early in the match and never looked back on the way to a 5-1 win against Middle Tennessee's soccer team in front of 345 at Blue Raider Field Sunday afternoon.
Tiger standout Shoko Mikami was a one-person wrecking crew in the match, scoring three goals and assisting on another to lead the Memphis attack.
The Blue Raiders (5-3-0), coming off a 1-0 win at Clemson Friday night, never got in sync offensively and leading scorer Rebecca Rodriguez left the match with an injury midway through the first half and did not return to make matters worse.
"We were not very sharp and it showed," Middle Tennessee coach Aston Rhoden said. "Memphis is a quality team and we knew that. We knew we had to play one of our better games to beat them and we didn't come close. The end result was a poor outcome for us."
Memphis (6-2-0) controlled the game throughout and used solid defense and a barrage of goals to secure the victory. Mikami scored off a corner in the 10th minute and less than three minutes later she floated a free kick out of the reach of Blue Raider keeper Danielle Perreault for the 2-0 lead.
The Tigers increased their advantage to 3-0 in the 35th minute when Asuka Kubota scored off a well-timed pass from Mikami. It marked the first time this season Middle Tennessee has allowed more than two goals in a game. Memphis increased its advantage to 4-0 in the 53rd minute when Kylie Hayes scored from 12 yards out.
The Blue Raiders scored their only goal in the 80th minute when Kala Morgan struck from 20 yards out for an unassisted goal to cut the lead to 4-1. Memphis capped the scoring in the 90th minute when Mikami registered the hat trick.
Middle Tennessee returns to action when it plays host to Belmont Friday at 3:30 p.m.
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