RADFORD – This weekend, the Radford women's soccer team will do more than take its first step towards defending its 2008 Big South crown. Instead, the Highlanders will hit the ground running.

Not only will Radford open up a five-game homestand with two opening weekend matches in three days at Cupp Stadium, hosting Howard on Friday at 7 p.m. and Tennessee Tech on Sunday at 1 p.m, but it's the start of a full month for the Highlanders.

Between Friday (Aug. 28) and Sept. 21, Radford will play nine of its 18 scheduled games before putting the brakes on the season with a 10-day layoff to close out the month of September.

Radford, which Big South prognosticators (the coaches) picked to win the regular season championship, begins its title defense in earnest by entertaining Howard (Friday) and Tennessee Tech (Sunday), a pair of teams that have kicked off their regular seasons already. Both the Bison and Golden Eagles are 0-1-0 (as of Thursday), and both are programs trying for upward trends. Howard welcomes in first-year head coach Brent Leiba to steer the program, and Tennessee Tech is looking to improve on a 5-14-1 mark in 2008.

While the Highlanders' first two opponents are looking for some momentum, Radford will try build on a 14-2-6 season in 2008, the best Division I women's soccer record in Virginia. 

They'll do so with a stout backfield led by Big South preseason player of the year Lisa Lubke and conference tournament MVP Caitlyn Roan. Lubke got the prognosticators' nod after a dazzling freshman season where she led the Big South in saves (118), save percentage (.855) and shutouts (6), and earned first team all-conference honors. Roan, an all-region selection last fall, held down a Highlander defense that posted a 0.94 goals against average, the program's best mark since 1997.

On the offensive end, three of the team's top scorers return to the mix. Latrice Lee (5g, 3a) and Justine Dugger (4g, 5a) bring their 13 points from a year ago back to the Highlander attack, and Melony Davis (4g, 3a, 11 pts) will factor in following a productive 2008. 

Following this weekend's games, Radford continues the homestand with a pair next weekend, when the Highlanders host East Tennessee State on Friday (Sept. 4) and Marshall on Sunday (Sept. 6).