HAMM RETURNS FOR USA vs. MEXICO IN DALLAS ON SUNDAY

HAMM RETURNS FOR USA vs. MEXICO IN DALLAS ON SUNDAY;
COTTON BOWL CLASH WILL BE TEAM'S FINAL MATCH OF 2003

Over 20,000 Tickets Already Sold For Nov. 2 Friendly Which
Will Be Broadcast Live on ESPN2 at 3 p.m. CT;
Milbrett Needs One More Goal to Hit 100 for Her International Career

CHICAGO (Oct. 27, 2003) - The U.S. Women's National Team will play its final match of 2003 when it faces regional rival Mexico on Nov. 2 at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas (3 p.m. CT live on ESPN2) in a game being promoted by the Dallas Burn of Major League Soccer and North Texas State Soccer Association. Tickets for the game, which is being presented by Avaya, can be purchased by calling the Burn office at 214-979-0303 or through Ticketmaster at 214-373-8000. Fans can also purchase tickets at the Dallas Burn office located at 14800 Quorum Drive, Suite 300. Ticket prices start as low as $20 and go up in range to $120. Over 20,000 tickets have already been sold for the match.
U.S. head coach April Heinrichs will bring 19 players to Dallas to wrap up a successful 2003 season in which the USA has posted a 16-2-4 record so far. The roster features the return of superstar forward Mia Hamm, who missed the USA's last match (a 2-2 tie with Italy in Kansas City) while resting after the Women's World Cup. Hamm, the world's all-time leading scorer with 144 goals, has strong ties to Texas. She attended Notre Dame High School in Wichita Falls, Texas, and was first brought into the U.S. Women's National Team after having been seen playing in the Texas ODP system. She also maintains an off-season home in Austin. While Hamm has played for the USA four times in Texas, most recently in a 3-2 win over Mexico in Houston on Dec. 10, 2000, she and the U.S. team have not played in Dallas for over eight years, last appearing there on May 19, 1995, a 9-1 win over Canada in which Hamm scored twice. The crowd of 6,145 at Hillcrest High School was, at the time, the largest crowd ever to watch the U.S. women in the United States.
In addition to Hamm, the U.S. roster includes two players who made the FIFA Women's World Cup All-Star Team in co-captain Joy Fawcett and midfielder Shannon Boxx, as well as the world's all-time cap leader Kristine Lilly (262). Fawcett was the only player besides goalkeeper Briana Scurry to play every minute of all six games. Boxx, who came into the Women's World Cup with only two caps, started five of the six games and scored two goals. Only two players from the U.S. 2003 Women's World Cup Team who will not be in Dallas: defender Cat Reddick, who will be with her UNC Tar Heels college team preparing for the ACC Tournament, and defender Kate Sobrero, who is getting married this weekend. Heinrichs has called in defender Heather Mitts to fill out that position. Mitts is fresh off a stint as a studio analyst for ABC/ESPN/ESPN2's coverage of the Women's World Cup, but will trade in her dress shoes for cleats.
Defender Brandi Chastain and midfielder Angela Hucles are still recovering from injuries but will be in Dallas, as will forward Cindy Parlow, who sat out the Italy match after suffering a concussion in the USA's victory over Canada in the Women's World Cup 3rd Place match. U.S. forward Tiffeny Milbrett, who scored the clinching goal in the 3-1 win over Canada, comes into the match needing just one more goal to become the fifth player in the history of international soccer to score 100 goals. She came very close in the USA's match against Italy, but instead Dallas soccer fans may be treated to a slice of soccer history. The USA has a 9-0-0 all-time record against Mexico, including a 5-0 win at Spartan Stadium San Jose, Calif. in the final match before the 2003 Women's World Cup. Mexico's best game against the USA came in Texas as the Americans were down 2-1 before two Cindy Parlow goals earned the victory in front of more than 11,000 fans on Dec. 10, 2000 in Houston.
Although Mexico fell short of qualifying for the 2003 Women's World Cup, losing a two-leg playoff series against Japan, the "Tricolores" are focused on qualifying for the 2004 Olympics at the CONCACAF Qualifying Tournament in Costa Rica at the end of next February. Mexican head coach Leo Cuellar, a former captain of the Mexican National Team and star player in the NASL, has included former Atlanta Beat star Maribel Dominguez on the roster as well as former Boston Breaker Monica Gonzalez. Mexico also has a quality goalkeeper in Jennifer Molina from Colgate University.

USA vs. Mexico Cotton Bowl - Dallas, Texas - Nov. 2, 2003 - 3 p.m. CT

U.S. WOMEN'S NATIONAL TEAM ROSTER
No. Player Pos. Ht. DOB Hometown College Caps/Goals
1 Scurry, Briana G 5-9 09/07/71 Dayton, Minn. UMass 126
2 Bivens, Kylie D 5-5 10/24/78 Upland, Calif. Santa Clara 15/0
3 Pearce, Christie D 5-6 06/24/75 Pt. Pleasant, N.J. Monmouth 107/4
5 Roberts, Tiffany M 5-3 05/05/77 San Ramon, Calif. UNC 104/7
6 Chastain, Brandi D 5-7 07/21/68 San Jose, Calif. Santa Clara 172/30
7 Boxx, Shannon M 5-8 06/29/77 Redondo Beach, Calif. Notre Dame 8/4
8 MacMillan, Shannon F 5-5 10/07/74 Escondido, Calif. Portland 158/59
9 Hamm, Mia F 5-5 03/17/72 Chapel Hill, N.C. UNC 244/144
10 Wagner, Aly M 5-5 08/10/80 San Jose, Calif. Santa Clara 52/12
11 Foudy, Julie M 5-6 01/23/71 Mission Viejo, Calif. Stanford 238/42
12 Parlow, Cindy F 5-11 05/08/78 Memphis, Tenn. UNC 133/64
13 Lilly, Kristine M 5-4 07/22/71 Wilton, Conn. UNC 262/93
14 Fawcett, Joy D 5-6 02/08/68 Huntington Beach, Calif. California 223/26
16 Milbrett, Tiffeny F 5-3 10/23/72 Portland, Ore. Portland 198/99
17 Slaton, Danielle D 5-6 06/10/80 San Jose, Calif. Santa Clara 42/1
18 Mullinix, Siri G 5-8 05/22/78 Greensboro, N.C. UNC 41
19 Hucles, Angela M 5-7 07/05/78 Virginia Beach, Va. UVA 24/1
20 Wambach, Abby F 5-11 06/02/80 Rochester, N.Y. Florida 21/12
21 Mitts, Heather D 5-5 06/06/78 Cincinnati, Ohio Florida 4/0

Goalkeepers (2): Briana Scurry, Siri Mullinix; Defenders (6): Kylie Bivens, Brandi Chastain, Joy Fawcett, Heather Mitts, Christie Pearce, Danielle Slaton; Midfielders (6): Shannon Boxx, Julie Foudy, Angela Hucles, Kristine Lilly. Tiffany Roberts, Aly Wagner; Forwards (5): Mia Hamm, Shannon MacMillan, Tiffeny Milbrett, Cindy Parlow, Abby Wambach.


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