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The Marquette men's soccer program has announced a partnership with Grassroots Soccer for a KickAids 3v3 fundraiser on Saturday, October 18 prior to the Golden Eagles' match against Connecticut, featuring free admission to the BIG EAST game for participants.

Soccer fanatics can join the fight against HIV/AIDS by forming a team of three people to compete in a fun 3-on-3 tournament, with a chance to win a trip to Africa. Registration begins at 2 p.m. at Valley Fields in Milwaukee, with the tournament kickoff 30 minutes later at 2:30 p.m.

"I am excited that the Milwaukee community, Marquette University, and Marquette soccer are supporting the cause of grassrootsoccerunited.org," said former Golden Eagles assistant coach Khaled El-Ahmad. "When I approached Louis and the coaching staff about making a difference in children's lives they did not hesitate one second to provide the platform to help."

All participants receive a free ticket to the game against Connecticut, with kickoff slated for 7:05 p.m. The championship games will be held in front of the Golden Eagle faithful at halftime of the BIG EAST game. The first 100 participants get a free burrito, and all those entering receive a free tournament t-shirt.

Youth and individual registration is $25, with the adult bracket and team registration at $50 for the fundraiser. Proceeds help provide African youth with the knowledge, skills and support to live HIV free.

The youth coed bracket is restricted to those 7-14 years of age, while the adult coed tournament features college aged and above. Youth will be placed on a 3v3 team mixed by age and gender.

"I am excited that Marquette men's soccer finds the capability, energy and excitement to make a difference. The 2006 event hosted by Marquette soccer is the most successful event as of yet and I believe this will be another memorable day," 'Survivor' winner and Grassroots Soccer co-founder Ethan Zohn said. "For me, the money aspect is secondary to the empowerment it gives the American population. The lesson they learn is that they can make a difference in Africa, just by paying a small fee, playing soccer and having fun."

Visit www.grassrootsoccerunited.org for general information and www.ecmiracles.org for specific KickAids 3v3 in Milwaukee event information. Please contact Khaled El-Ahmad with questions or registration at elahmadk@gmail.com.