Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Men's Soccer	SIUE Men's Soccer SIUE Athletics

Matt Harris Kevin Bielicki

August 24, 2007 SIUE's Preseason Complete with Wins over Tulsa, Creighton           EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - Just how good is the Southern Illinois University Edwardsville men's soccer team?           That question remains to be seen as the Cougars, who are ranked No. 7 in the NCAA Division II poll by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA), begin their season this week. But if the preseason is any indication, there's reason for a great amount of optimism.           SIUE defeated Creighton University Friday night 1-0 in Omaha, Neb. The Cougars also blanked Tulsa last Friday in a matchup at Korte Stadium. Both Tulsa and Creighton are NCAA Division I members. Tulsa is a member of Conference USA while Creighton is a member of the Missouri Valley Conference.           "And Creighton is picked to win the Missouri Valley this season," noted Coach Ed Huneke. Creighton received votes in the NSCAA/NCAA Division I Top 25 Preseason Poll.           The Cougars used a goal from Matt Harris (St. Charles, Mo.) in the Tulsa game and a score from Kevin Bielicki (St. Louis) Friday to defeat Creighton.           The goalkeeping duties were split between senior Greg Crook (Columbia) and freshman Scott Meyer (Ballwin, Mo.).           SIUE's official regular season begins next Friday when it travels to Christian Brothers for a 7 p.m. game in Memphis, Tenn.           The Cougars' first regular season home game also is their first Great Lakes Valley Conference game. SIUE takes on Kentucky Wesleyan on Sept. 7 at 7:30 p.m. at Korte Stadium.                     -siue cougars-