After scoring 12 seconds into its last match Sunday against UT Martin to get the game’s only goal, the Memphis Tigers waited a little longer — until the 85th minute — to get one Thursday in its American Conference opening at Charlotte.

But freshman forward Taliah Brooks’ late goal was all the 10th-ranked Tigers (7-0-1, 1-0 in American) needed in their 1-0 victory over the 49ers.

Tigers, Volunteers battle to scoreless draw in women’s soccer

Memphis outshot Charlotte, 18-6, including putting 10 on target and hitting the crossbar twice, but it was the final shot that broke the shutout.

“The message was that we are going to have a target on (our) back every single week. Charlotte (4-4, 0-1) brought it tonight, their keeper made some great saves,” said head coach Brooks Monaghan. “We did some good things when we played to the game plan, and we created a lot of chances, so it was great to get the result. There should be no surprises now, because every week is going to be a lot like this one.” 

After Ellis Kelly and Ai Kitagawa each hit the crossbar in the second half, the Tigers got the ball in the box in the final 85th minute when Alex Mackay fired a shot toward the bottom right corner of the Charlotte goal. The Charlotte keeper stopped Mackay’s shot, but Brooks pounced on the rebound for her third goal of the season.

Charlotte almost got the equalizer in the final minutes, but Finley Lavin cleared a late 49er scoring attempt off the line.

The Tigers' next match will be Sept. 18, when they host UAB at 7 p.m.