When a play needed to be made, Rasheeda Ansari stepped up and made it on Friday.

The speedy freshman struck for her third goal of the season with less than nine minutes remaining in regulation, lifting the University of Memphis to a 1-0 victory over Colorado College in the teams' Conference USA opener at Stewart Field.

Memphis, ranked No. 4 in this week's NSCAA Central Region poll, improved to 7-2 overall while the Tigers dropped to 4-2-3 and saw their six-game undefeated streak come to an end.

It also was their third consecutive shutout loss to the team that eliminated them from the C-USA post-season tournament last fall en route to the league's playoff championship.

“Memphis is a good team,” said head coach Geoff Bennett. “But you know what? So are we. They came out and played hard, just as we expected. They defended us well and capitalized on their opportunity. They've got our number right now. We respect them, but I felt we had a handful of good chances. For us it's just a matter of putting all the pieces together.”

CC currently is ranked No. 7 in the Central Region.

The teams appeared headed for overtime until Ansari took a quick pass from Laura Laufenberg just outside the box, used her quickness to slip past the defense and blasted a shot high over Colorado College goalkeeper Caitlin Hulyo, who came sliding out in an effort to cut down the angle. 

Hulyo and Memphis keeper Elise Kuhar-Pitters each was credited with five saves in the match. The visitors finished with an 18-15 edge in overall shots, but CC missed the net by inches on several of its best opportunities.

The Tigers hope to even their conference record at 1-1 on Sunday, when they play host to UAB in another contest at Stewart Field.