Women's Soccer Set to Host High Point Wednesday

The Matchup

Teams: Asheville (10-4, 4-2 BSC)

High Point (7-3-4, 2-2-1 BSC)

Location: Greenwood Field, Asheville, N.C.
Time: 7:00 p.m. ET

Live Video (Big South Network) | Live Stats | @AshevilleDogs

ASHEVILLE, N.C. - The UNC Asheville women's soccer team will look to extend its conference winning streak to three games when the Bulldogs welcome the High Point Panthers to Greenwood Field Wednesday night. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ET and the game will be available live on the Big South Network.

Asheville is coming off two wins last week, shutting out Charleston Southern at home, 1-0, and upending Radford on the road, 2-1. The Bulldogs are tied for third in the conference standings, posting a 4-2 record. High Point finished the previous week 0-1-1, drawing a 0-0 tie with Coastal Carolina and dropping a 1-0 decision at Liberty.

Notables

• Following a week in which the Bulldogs earned a pair of wins over Charleston Southern (Oct. 7) and Radford (Oct. 10), freshman goalkeeper Lily Brown was named the Big South Conference Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 12. It marks the first career award for Brown and the second weekly award for Asheville this season after junior Paige Trent was named the conference's Attacking Player of the Week on Aug. 24. Brown becomes the first Bulldog to win Defensive Player of the Week honors since the award's inception in 2010. She is the fourth player under fifth-year head coach Michelle Demko to receive a weekly award and the 28th Bulldog since 1993 to garner weekly conference accolades. During the past week, Brown tallied 15 saves while allowing just a single goal in 180 minutes played. In the 1-0 win over CSU, Brown recorded her third shutout of a conference opponent, which leads the league for conference-only games. Additionally in conference-only games, Brown ranks first in saves (42) and second in saves per game (7.00).

• Sophomore Caroline Houser knocked in her second game-winning goal of the season and fifth goal overall in Asheville's 2-1 road victory over Radford Oct. 10. Houser headed in the goal off a free kick from sophomore Katie Tuorto in the 75th minute to break a 1-1 tie. Houser's five goals ranks second-highest among her teammates and is tied for seventh in the conference.

• Caroline Houser is on pace to set a new school record for assists in a season as her current total of nine helpers is tied for most in a single season with Kaitlyn Eckert (2012). The 2014 Big South Conference Freshman of the Year has 13 career assists, tied for fith-most in school history.

• The Bulldogs have shown to possess one of the most dynamic offenses in the Big South Conference, pacing the conference in goals (29), goals per game (2.07) and points (84) while also ranking second in shots (238, 17.0 per game) and assists (26, 1.86 per game). The offensive attack has been sparked by a pair of underclassmen, as freshman Justine James' six goals lead the team while sophomore Caroline Houser's 19 points (5 G, 9 A) are tops on the team.

• The Bulldogs have outscored their opponents 29-17 this season and have been involved in a number of tight contests. In fact, Asheville has posted an impressive 6-1 (.857) record in games decided by one goal.

• Asheville is 0-4-1 in the last five meetings against the Panthers, falling by a final of 2-1 in the teams' last meeting, Oct. 14, 2014, at High Point.

Quotable

"Tomorrow we are back at home to host conference opponent High Point. We need to be fully engaged in this game. Our field awareness will be key, as we need to constantly be scanning for our team shape and also aware of High Point's positioning on each of our lines. This is another 90 minute quest with regard to mental toughness, focus, and team discipline. We are looking to grow in these areas tomorrow." - Fifth-year head coach Michelle Demko

Up Next

• Following Wednesday's match, the Bulldogs hit the road for a pair of games beginning with Coastal Carolina (8-4-1, 4-0-1 BSC) Oct. 17. Asheville will dip outside of the Big South to round out the roadtrip, traveling to South Carolina State Oct. 21.