MORROW, Ga. --- OCTOBER 23, 2006 --- The 2006 Peach Belt Conference Men's Soccer Tournament kicks off this week, and the Clayton State Lakers are primed for another run at the tournament championship.

The Lakers, which won a share of their third Peach Belt Conference regular season championship this season, will be seeded second this week in the conference tournament. Clayton State will play host to seventh-seeded Francis Marion in the quarterfinals on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Laker Field.

Should Clayton State prevail, the Lakers will advance to Friday’s conference semifinals against either North Georgia or USC-Aiken at Lander. The tournament championship will be on Saturday at Lander.

Clayton State finished the 2006 season 9-8 overall and 5-2 in the Peach Belt for 15 points. The Lakers finished tied for first place with Lander, but the Bearcats were awarded the top seed and tournament host by virtue of a 4-1 victory over Clayton State on Sept. 30.

After starting the season 4-7 overall, Clayton State has won five of its last six games. However, the regular season ended on a sour note on Saturday as the Lakers dropped a tough 1-0 decision at USC-Upstate.

Leading the Clayton State attack is senior forward Kevin Crooks, who has come alive offensively and leads the Lakers in scoring with nine goals and three assists. In addition, junior midfielder Hailab Habtom has scored six goals and leads the Peach Belt in assists with 11. Habtom is also tied for seventh in the nation in assists.

A victory over Francis Marion on Tuesday would give Clayton State its ninth season of 10 or more victories.