Through matches of Oct. 8, there is a three way tie atop Conference USA. Marquette, Charlotte and Cincinnati are each 4-0, but the Golden Eagles and 49ers meet Friday in Milwaukee. Catch up on all of the C-USA news in this week's notebook.

PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

OFFENSIVE: Amanda Duffy, East Carolina
Jr., F, Jacksonville, N.C.

East Carolina's AMANDA DUFFY is the Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week for the period ending Oct. 7. She set a career-high for goals in a match (three) and points in a match (seven) with three goals and an assist in the Pirates' 6-0 victory over Campbell. Duffy's eight goals this season match her total for the previous two years combined.

DEFENSIVE: Lisa Nowoslawski, UAB
Jr., GK, Melbourne, Fla.

UAB's LISA NOWOSLAWSKI is the Conference USA Defensive Player of the Week for the period ending Oct. 7. Nowoslawski recorded her second and third shutouts of the season with wins over Birmingham Southern (3-0) and Louisville (3-0). She had a combined eight saves in the two matches and has an .855 save percentage this season.


THE WEEK AHEAD
On Friday, Charlottte visits No. 17 Marquette in a matchup between two of the three unbeaten teams in Conference USA. The Golden Eagles and 49ers have met in either the semifinals or finals of the last five C-USA Tournaments. On Sunday, Marquette then faces East Carolina, which begins the week at 3-1, one match behind league-leading Marquette, Charlotte and Cincinnati.

SHUTOUT STRING SNAPPED
When Furman scored a goal at the 84:35 mark of its Oct. 4 1-1 tie at Charlotte, it marked the first time in 470:02 that the 49ers had allowed a goal.


C-USA NOTEBOOK
CHARLOTTE
Despite a 1-1 tie with Furman on Oct. 4,. Charlotte extended its unbeaten string to seven matches. It marked the first time in over 470 minutes of action that the 49ers had allowed a goal. Junior MIEL CASEY tallied Charlotte's goal, matching her season-high for goals (two) and points (seven) in a season. After starting the year 0-2-1, Charlotte is 6-0-1 in its last seven matches, including four shutouts. Charlotte travels to No. 17 Marquette on Friday and DePaul. Charlotte and Marquette have met in either the semifinals or the finals of the last five C-USA Tournaments.

CINCINNATI
Cincinnati bounced back from a 1-0 loss to Butler with a 2-0 victory over Toledo on Oct. 7. ANN THOMAS had the game-winning goal, her team-leading sixth of the season. CHRISTY HOFFMAN had three saves for her sixth shutout of the season. Junior STACEY KYSER anchors a defense that has allowed just four goals in 11 matches. The Bearcats visit Saint Louis on Friday. Cincinnati and Saint louis split matches last season, with SLU taking a 4-0 regular season victory and UC winning a 1-0 double overtime match at the C-USA Tournament.

DE PAUL
Loyola-Chicago downed DePaul, 1-0 on Oct. 8. Purdue handed DePaul a 2-0 setback on Oct. 5. The Blue Demons host East Carolina and Charlotte this weekend.

EAST CAROLINA
AMANDA DUFFY's three goals and one assist led East Carolina to its fifth win in six matches, a 6-0 defeat of Campbell. Duffy set a career-high for goals in a match (three), points in a match (seven) and goals in a season (eight). LEIGH STEIGERWALD had the shutout (six saves) in her first acttion of the season. ECU visits UNC Wilmington on Tuesday, DePaul on Friday and Marquette on Sunday.

HOUSTON
Houston's Oct. 5 match against No. 9 Texas A&M was postponed due to weather. The Cougars suffered a 4-0 loss at Texas on Oct. 7. UH returns to action on Friday at UAB and on Sunday at South Florida.

LOUISVILLE
Murray State downed Louisville on Oct. 4, 4-3 and UAB shutout the Cardinals, 3-0 on Oct. 7. Louisville is 2-8 overall and 1-3 in Conference USA. Four of the Cards' losses have been by one goal. Louisville hosts Tennessee-Martin on Friday and then travels to Saint Louis on Sunday.

MARQUETTE
No. 17 Marquette's eight-match winning streak came to an end when Harvard turned the visiting Golden Eagles back, 2-1 in double overtime on Oct. 5. Harvard was not ranked at the time of the match, but was No. 23 in the preseason polls. KRISTEN JENSEN had her second goal of the season to account for MU's lone goal. Marquette opens a key two match homestand Friday against Charlotte.

MEMPHIS
Memphis suffered a 3-2 loss to intra-city rival Christian Brothers on Oct. 3. ANNIKA MOLLER had the first goal for the Tigers, but Christian Brothers responded with three straight goals en route to the victory. KATARINA WICKSELL had seven saves for Memphis, who travels to Tennessee Tech on Oct. 9.

SAINT LOUIS
Junior JENNY KEHL's game-winning goal in the 97th minute propelled Saint Louis to a 1-0 victory over Southwest Missouri State on Oct. 2. SLU is now 5-4 on the season. SLU is now 3-3 in one-goal matches and 2-2 in overtime tilts this season. The Billikens travel to Evansville on Tuesday before returning home to host Cincinnati and Louisville on Friday and Sunday, respectively.

SOUTH FLORIDA
South Florida bounced back from its 1-0 loss to No. 12 Florida State with a 3-1 triumph over Jacksonville on Oct. 5. The Bulls had a balanced scoring attack, as STINE HAGH, ALESIA LONG and JEN STAHL recorded the USF goals. USF suffered a 4-1 loss to host Florida Atlantic on Oct. 7. South Florida returns to action against visiting TCU on Friday and Houston on Sunday.

SOUTHERN MISS
Junior forward TRICIA WILES had three of Southern Miss' eight goals in an 8-0 shutout of Nicholls State on Oct. 3. LELIA MC REYNOLDS had two assists, and the USM defense limited Nicholls State to just two shots on goal. Southern Miss is back in action on Oct. 12 against Memphis.

TCU
TCU's Oct. 5 match against Centenary was cancelled due to weather. The Horned Frogs host Rice on Wednesday. TCU knocked off host UTEP, 2-1 in overtime on Oct. 2. Freshman LAURA GREENBERG, who sat out TCU's last two matches with a concussion, scored the game-winning goal, which was her fifth goal of the season. She has scored a goal in each of the last four matches in which she has appeared.

TULANE
Tulane is on a two-match winning streak, having defeated Louisiana-Monroe, 5-0 and William Carey, 7-0. Freshman LINDSAY MORRIS continued her strong play with two goals and an assist. She assisted on the game-winning goal for the second straight Tulane win. MANDY SCHUMACHER also had two goals and an assist against William Carey. Freshman goalkeeper SARA SIMPSON recorded her second career shutout over the weekend. Both shutouts have come in the last three games. Tulane returns to action this weekend at Wake Forest and Memphis.


UAB
UAB shutout Birmingham Southern, 3-0 and Louisville, 3-0. Goalkeeper LISA NOWOSLAWSKI recorded her third shutout of the season with three saves against the Cardinals. Senior BRIDGET WINSTON had three goals on the week and is tied for the team lead with four goals. The Blazers host Houston and TCU this weekend.

C-USA TOURNAMENT
The 2001 Conference USA Tournament will be held Nov. 7-10 at Valley Fields in Milwaukee. Marquette will serve as the host institution for the event. The championship, slated for 2 p.m. on Nov. 10, will be televised by the C-USA Television Network. You can also refer to the league's official website, www.c-usasports.com, for recaps, box scores and photos throughout the tournament.