First-Place Tigers Travel to Temple for Thursday Morning Contest

Thursday, October 15

Philadelphia, Pa.

11 a.m.

University of Memphis

Temple

First-Place Tigers Travel to Temple for Thursday Morning Contest

Oct 14, 2026 | Women's Soccer

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The Memphis women's soccer team hits the road for an American Conference matchup against Temple on Thursday at 11 a.m. CT in Philadelphia, Pa. The match will be streamed live on ESPN+.

The Tigers (4-0-1 American) enter Thursday's contest atop the American Conference standings after picking up a pair of home victories over Tulsa and Charlotte last week. Memphis holds a one-point advantage over UAB and Florida Atlantic with a game in hand and remains the conference's last unbeaten team.

Memphis opened last week with a dominant 4-0 victory over Tulsa on Thursday, with four different Tigers finding the back of the net. Freshman Abby Forsgren opened the scoring with her fourth goal of the season before junior Ai Kitagawa added her fifth of the campaign while also dishing out two assists. Sophomore Ellis Kelly and junior Taliah Brooks each scored for the second consecutive match, while freshman Ella Etienne recorded her first collegiate point with an assist on the final goal.

The Tigers followed that performance with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Charlotte on Sunday. Kitagawa provided both goals, opening the scoring in the 20th minute with a perfectly placed long-range free kick into the upper-left corner. After Charlotte leveled the match in the second half, Kitagawa converted from the penalty spot in the 84th minute to secure all three points for Memphis.

Kitagawa's outstanding performances earned her a collection of weekly honors, including American Conference Offensive Player and Midfielder of the Week, TopDrawerSoccer Team of the Week, Tennessee Sports Writers Association Women's Soccer Player of the Week, UniGol Player of the Week and College Soccer News Offensive Player of the Week.

The junior totaled eight points across the two victories, recording three goals and two assists. With 23 career goals, Kitagawa now ranks 12th in Memphis program history. She also sits eighth in career game-winning goals (nine) and third in matches with two or more goals (six).

SCOUTING REPORT

Temple enters Thursday's matchup with a 9-3-2 record and is on pace for its first winning season since 2015. The Owls currently sit at No. 227 in the RPI and are coming off a 1-0 road victory over South Florida in Tampa last week.

Temple's most notable result of the season came in a 2-0 victory over UAB, which currently ranks No. 68 in the RPI. The Owls' worst defeat came in mid-August when they fell 4-0 on the road at George Washington.

Memphis holds an 11-1-1 advantage in the all-time series and has not lost to Temple since a 2-1 defeat in Memphis in 2015. Last season, the Tigers cruised to a 6-0 victory over the Owls, outshooting Temple 27-1. The 27 shots marked a season high for Memphis, while the Tigers also recorded season highs in points (18) and assists (six).

The Owls are led by third-year head coach Chris Shaw, who owns a 15-35-2 record at Temple. Shaw has compiled a 173-152-22 career record with previous stops at Division II Mount Olive and Barton before moving to Division I with UNLV and Robert Morris.

Temple has relied heavily on its freshman class this season, particularly forward Victoria Pimenta, forward Katelyn Revelle and goalkeeper Ana Zivkovic.

Pimenta leads the Owls with 15 points, recording five goals and five assists to rank eighth in the American Conference in both categories. Revelle has also found the back of the net five times despite making just seven starts, while Zivkovic leads the conference with six shutouts.

As a team, Temple ranks 25th nationally in shutout percentage (.571), 64th in shots per game (15.36) and 72nd in corner kicks per game (5.79).

TIGER TIDBITS

Since 2023, Memphis owns a 57-8-9 overall record and an .831 winning percentage. Only No. 24 Florida State (.853) has posted a higher winning percentage over that span.
The Tigers have been equally dominant in conference play, posting a 28-0-6 record and an .912 winning percentage against American Conference opponents since 2023. Only Milwaukee (.917) has recorded a higher conference winning percentage during that stretch.
Memphis has not lost a regular-season conference match since Oct. 27, 2022, when the Tigers fell on the road at SMU.
Through 10 matches, Memphis has outshot its opponents 220-86, including a 99-45 advantage in shots on goal. The Tigers have also held an 81-35 edge in corner kicks.
Head coach Brooks Monaghan has called upon several freshmen and transfers to make significant contributions this season:
- Freshman Miyu Morota has appeared in seven matches, totaling 137 minutes.
- Freshman Ella Etienne has played 92 minutes across six appearances, recording her first collegiate assist against Tulsa.
- Freshman Marika Martineau has appeared in 10 matches, logging 203 minutes.
- Freshman Neko Michell has totaled 169 minutes across seven matches, earning her first collegiate start at No. 8 Ohio State.
- Transfer Zerina Markovic has appeared in all 12 matches, playing 452 minutes while recording one goal and one assist.
- Freshman Abby Forsgren has started every match for the Tigers, playing 1,045 of 1,080 possible minutes. She has contributed four goals and five assists while recording 33 shots, including 16 on goal.
- Transfer Natalie Dvorakova has played 289 minutes across nine matches, making two starts and scoring her first collegiate goal.
- Freshman Maira Boosman has played a significant role in the Tigers' back line, starting 10 of 12 matches and totaling 830 minutes.
Several returning Tigers have also taken on expanded roles and increased their production this season:
- Sophomore goalkeeper Ava Galani has taken over the starting role in net, playing 1,070 of 1,080 possible minutes while recording four shutouts.
- Sophomore Ava Gaida has made nine starts this season after entering the campaign without a collegiate start. She has now appeared in 23 career matches.
- Redshirt freshman Grayson Williams made her collegiate debut this season and earned her first career start at No. 8 Ohio State. Williams later scored her first two collegiate goals in a span of just 16 minutes off the bench at Florida Atlantic.

For the Tigers' most recent and up-to-date schedule, click HERE.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE TIGERS: For complete information on Memphis Tigers Soccer, visit www.GoTigersGo.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.