Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2008 | 1:20 p.m.
It'll be a different game of fussball tonight at 6 p.m. for UNLV at Peter Johann Memorial Field.
For starters, the opponent will be the Under-17 squad from Borussia Monchengladbach, which currently leads the German second division, or Bundesliga 2.
Borussia's youth squad won the prestigious Mayors Cup in Las Vegas over the weekend, dominating its five foes.
Rebels coach Mario Sanchez expects a few of those players to blossom into regulars for the German national team in future World Cups.
"It'll be the best team we play in the next couple of years," Sanchez said. "They're the real deal. Every kid is great on the ball. They're very athletic.
"They're kids who want to be pros. It's exciting. I'm really looking forward to it."
For his own starters, Sanchez will tweak his lineup for tonights friendly match after star forward Danny Cruz left Tuesday morning for a U-20 national team training session in New Orleans.
Cruz was named to the College Soccer News All-Freshman second team last season, the first time a UNLV rookie earned such national honors. He scored four goals and had four assists in his debut as a Rebel in 2007.
UNLV finished 6-5-2 last season, its second under Sanchez and its first winning campaign since 2002.
Sanchez will start Ricky Abrego, a Silverado High graduate who will be a sophomore next fall, and senior-to-be Ben Haugland up front against Borussia.
Next fall, however, Sanchez expects to employ Sanchez and Francis Khamis, who signed a letter of intent to play at UNLV earlier this month, at the top of UNLV's attack.
A slick 6-foot-3 striker from Sudan, Khamis led Yavapai College to an NJCAA championship last fall.
Sanchez said those two should form one of the most dangerous scoring duos in college soccer.
Because the Rebels are playing a foreign opponent, tonight's game will not count against the five spring exhibition matches they're allotted by the NCAA.
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8:00 p.m.: UNLV's soccer team beat Borussia 4-2 Tuesday night in an entertaining match in front of about 800 fans at Peter Johann Memorial Field.
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