University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Bulldogs Open Big South Play at Winthrop Wednesday Night
09.23.2015 | Women's Soccer
THE MATCHUP
Teams: Asheville (6-2, 0-0 BSC)
Winthrop (3-3-1, 0-0 BSC)
Location: Eagle Field, Rock Hill, S.C.
Time: 6:00 p.m.
LIVE STATS - LIVE VIDEO (BIG SOUTH NETWORK)
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – The UNC Asheville women's soccer team opens Big South Conference play with a Wednesday night road trip to Rock Hill, S.C. to take on Winthrop. The Bulldogs enter the conference schedule with a 6-2 overall record with back-to-back overtime wins, while Winthrop comes into the night with a 3-3-1 record after splitting their final two non-conference contests.
NOTABLES
-UNC Asheville sophomore Caroline Houser is tied for first in the nation in assists per game ratio (1.0/per) and is second in the nation for total assists (8), one behind Georgia Southern's Nora El-Shami's nine total assists to date.
-As a team, the Bulldogs are ranked 15th nationally in scoring offense, averaging 2.63 goals per contest. They are No. 19 nationally in total points per game with 7.25/per.
-Asheville has won their last two Big South Conference opening matches (two 1-0 wins vs. Campbell; 9/26/2013 and 9/24/2014).
-The Bulldogs are 3-2 in BSC openers the last five years, and 6-4 over the last 10 years.
-Asheville and Winthrop have common opponents in Western Carolina, Francis Marion and The Citadel. Asheville went 2-1 in those three matchups, while Winthrop was 2-0-1.
-Wednesday's match will mark the earliest calendar meeting ever between Asheville and Winthrop, eclipsing the previous date of Sept. 27 during the 2008 season.
-Asheville leads the all-time series 8-7-1, but Winthrop has won the last six meetings between the teams. The last Bulldog victory came in that September 2008 meeting – a 2-1 overtime victory in Rock Hill.
QUOTABLES
“Looking forward to starting conference play. The stakes are a bit higher, games will be more competitive and we must have a greater sense of urgency and make smarter decisions to keep the ball. We have spent the last four weeks preparing for this second half of the season, so hopefully that discipline will pay off in the coming games. This group has a great desire to compete. I am looking forward to watching them play at a high level.” - Head Coach Michelle Demko
UP NEXT
-Asheville continues their conference-opening road trip at Campbell on Saturday before returning home to take on Presbyterian next Wednesday, September 30.
