UAB junior Jason McLaughlin scored a golden goal in the 104th minute to advance the second-seeded Blazers to the Conference USA Tournament finals against top seed Memphis. The two teams will meet at 2 p.m. at Louisville's Cardinal Park Soccer Stadium and the match will be broadcast on the C-USA Television Network.

After playing into the second overtime with a scoreless tie, McLaughlin scored off a pass from the left side for his fifth goal of the season. He was assisted by Lukasz Kwapisz and Rogerio Oliveira. It was the Blazers first win in a double overtime match since 2001, when they defeated Charlotte, 2-1.

In the first match, top-seeded Memphis advanced to its first C-USA tournament final since 1998, knocking off four-time defending champion Saint Louis, 1-0. Midfielder John Reilly scored for the Tigers in the 41st minute off assists from Michael Coburn and Marcus McCarty.

Following a record day of rainfall in Louisville that postponed action, the tournament finally got underway Friday and is being played three consecutive days.

The C-USA Championship game will be aired on the Conference USA Television Network. Don Russell will call the play-by-play, and Bill McDermott provides the color commentary. Conference USA's official website, www.ConferenceUSA.com, will provide updates, box scores, recaps and photos.

Semifinal #1 Quotes

Saint Louis Head Coach Dan Donigan

“I thought we did a really good job for the first 45 minutes. I really wanted to get it to halftime without giving up a goal, but unfortunately we had a mental lapse. The keeper got caught in between either staying on his line or coming out of his line and we didn’t have guys marking up on the two guys in the middle. It was a simple little broken play, really.”

“I think they (the team) knew what was a stake. We didn’t play as well as we needed to, it’s as simple as that. There’s really not a whole lot you can say.

“The outlook for next year is very bright. I love my team. I love my players on my team. They’re very young. I think they’re very talented and very good. So, luckily, next year is another year.”

Memphis Head Coach Richie Grant

“I don’t think that was our best performance today. We looked a little uncomfortable with the ball when we processed it. It was a little out of character. Obviously, not letting the other team score is also important at this point.”

“It was a super goal. We weren’t just going to throw it in. We went short and we had a great cross from Coburn, a flip toss from Marcus McCarty and a superb finish by John Reilly.”

“We were underdogs back in August. Now you come here and you’re favorites, it’s obviously a credit to our squad. We knew if we could get here with the one or two seed we would have an opportunity to play a team that played the first day.”

Semifinal #2 Quotes

Charlotte Head Coach John Tart

“I felt like our team played really well. When I look back, in the first half, we could have easily been up 3-0, but we weren’t. We were creating great opportunities, but we just weren’t finding a way to find the back of the net. I felt like our team played well, considering that we had played the day before.”

“I couldn’t ask for anything more from the guys. They represented us very well, our team is a very good team. It’s just one of those things that happen in sports and it happened in soccer.”

“Give UAB credit, they were (seeded) second and they deserved the bye. That’s why you play the regular season. I thought out players played extremely well today, particularly when you think about the fact that they played a game yesterday. They played a very tough game against #3 seed Cincinnati and were able to turn around and take #2 seed UAB to a second overtime.”

“I thought our guys showed tremendous effort, tremendous heart, and good skill out on the field.”


UAB Head Coach Mike Getman
“I thought it was a terrific goal. The play got played out to our #16 (Lukasz Kwapisz). He served a great ball back to our #4 (Jason McLaughlin). He’s scored five goals in the last seven games.”

“I thought our guys just played well the whole 2nd half. We got the ball moving. We played simple, we created chances. We didn’t get enough shots on goal, but we got shots. That one (the game winner) happened to have found its way into the net.”

“Memphis is the #1 team in the conference. They’ve earned it, they’re the #1 seed. They showed why today. At the same time, we’re confident that we can play with anybody in the country. We’re going to come out and see what happens.”

“Memphis is a big, strong, physical team. We’re a smaller, quicker, maybe more technical team. I think it’s going to be a question of who can impose their style of play on the game and who finishes the chances they get. That will be the difference in the game.”

A complete schedule of the 2004 Conference USA Men's Soccer Tournament follows.

2004 CONFERENCE USA TOURNAMENT MATCH SCHEDULE

Friday, November 12
Match 1 - (5) Saint Louis 2,(4) USF 0
Match 2 - (6) Charlotte 2, (3) Cincinnati 0

Saturday, November 13 (Semifinals)
Match 3 - (1) Memphis 1, Saint Louis 0
Match 4 - (2) UAB 1, Charlotte 0 (2OT)

Sunday, November 14 (Finals)
Match 5 - Championship Match 2 p.m. (C-USA Television Network)

All times are Eastern.
All Games played at Cardinal Park Soccer Stadium, Louisville, Ky.