Women's Soccer at EKU on Friday & Host Belmont on Sunday

ASHEVILLE, N.C. – The UNC Asheville women's soccer team will take on teams from the Ohio Valley Conference this weekend, one on the road and one at home. The Bulldogs travel to Eastern Kentucky Friday at 5 p.m., followed by a women's soccer clash at home with Belmont Sunday at Greenwood Field starting at 1 p.m.

Sunday's match is scheduled to be broadcast on the Big South Network for no charge. Fans can access the match under the multimedia tag at uncabulldogs.com.

Asheville (3-2-0) played just once last weekend and dropped a frustrating 1-0 decision to Alabama State. The Bulldogs out-shot the Hornets, 21-5. They hit the cross bar twice, had a goal disallowed late and dominated the match. Alabama State scored midway through the second half and made that stand up for the road win.

The Bulldogs were scheduled to play South Carolina State last Sunday but heavy rain in the Asheville area forced the game to be rescheduled until Monday, Sept. 29.

Asheville will have two tough challenges this weekend with the OVC. Eastern Kentucky is 2-3-0 on the year but owns a road victory at Western Carolina. Belmont is 2-1-2 on the young season with an impressive win over Middle Tennessee State.

“We have been working on making more dangerous choices in our attack and having an opportunity to make those decisions on Friday should only prepare us for our matchup on Sunday,” stated Bulldog coach Michelle Demko.

Asheville is 1-1 against Eastern Kentucky, losing on the road two years ago by a 2-1 score. The Bulldogs earned a 2-1 victory over the Colonels last season at Greenwood Field.

“We head on the road to play at EKU Friday. This trip will be about competing and implementing our training themes from this past week. We had a great week on the field, creating numbers up situations to be more dangerous in the attack,” added Demko. “This group continues to learn and challenge each other and implement new themes we present to them that continue to make us a better soccer team.”

Sunday's meeting will be the first ever for Asheville with Belmont.

“This will be our first match against Belmont, when return home this weekend to play on Sunday. They are a team that is athletic and moves the ball well and plays as similar style to us,” commented Demko. “We will need to focus on our process and game plan for 90 minutes and not take any breaks. This will be a good test for us prior to heading into conference games that are right around the corner.”

BULLDOG NOTES

UNC Asheville has fired at least 21 shots in three different games this season. The Bulldogs had 29 shots against Mars Hill on Aug. 31, the second most in school history.

Asheville is second in the Big South in shots per game with an 18.80 per game average.

The Bulldogs have allowed the least amount of goals this year in the Big South with just five.

Asheville leads the Big South in corner kicks with a 6.40 per game mark.

Senior goalkeeper Heather Muller has 371 career saves. She is the school's all-time leader.

The Bulldogs are 6-4-1 in their last 11 games played at Greenwood Field.