Women's Soccer Takes To The Road In Conference Play
September 24, 2003 | Soccer
GREENVILLE, N.C. -- The East Carolina women's soccer team will hit the road this weekend as they continue Conference USA play against Tulane and Houston.
The Pirates (4-2-2, 1-0-1) opened C-USA play this past weekend when they hosted USF (2-3-1, 1-0-1) and Southern Miss (5-2-1, 0-2-0). ECU played to a 1-1 double-overtime draw against the Bulls at Transamerica Field in Charlotte, N.C., Friday night. Sophomore Rachelle Cabeceiras scored the lone Pirate goal off a corner kick by Melissa Penney in the 81st-minute to tie the match, which was moved to Charlotte due to Hurricane Isabel.
Sunday's match saw the Golden Eagles suffer the second consecutive loss in conference action, as the Pirates put up four goals and recorded its fourth shutout of the season. Four different Lady Pirates got into the scoring action with Krystel Pabey, Carmen Calpo, and Anastasia Nikas each scoring their first goals of the season. Sophomore Meghan McCallion also netted a goal, which was her sixth of the season. Sophomore goalkeeper Lindsi Troxler had 87 minutes of stellar play in the net to keep the Golden Eagles off the board.
Due to a 4-2-2 start and a 1-0-1 conference record in opening play, for the first time this season the Pirates garnered votes by Soccer Buzz for the Southeast Region top 10 rankings.
"I thought this past weekend was interesting in conference play," said ECU head coach Rob Donnenwirth. "After the first day, the tables had turned from last year's leader board. All the teams that didn't make the conference tournament last year won their matches. This type of play just shows you that every game is going to be a battle. You can't look at who is suppose to beat who on paper. This is how every conference game is going to be this year."
The Pirates are looking for their first win against the Green Wave (4-3-1, 1-1-0) on Friday. The last meeting between the two schools took place in 2001 at Tulane with the Green Wave shutting out ECU, 2-0.
On the other hand, the Pirates are riding a two game winning streak against the Houston Cougars (2-6-1, 0-2-0). Both teams squared off in last year's C-USA Tournament, with the Pirates winning, 2-0. The victory was the Pirates first ever postseason win.
Donnenwirth knows that these next two games won't be an easy task, especially playing on the road.
"This weekend's matches will be tough," stated Donnenwirth. "We're at Tulane and they play on sports turf, which is a bit of advantage for them. It's going to be a night game and I'm sure there's going to be a rowdy crowd as well. With Tulane beating Marquette this weekend, we know this is going to be a battle. Houston is a very physical team. They're the type of team that you need to bring your body armor with you when you play. We are hoping to get two big wins this week and if we do that, we will be in good shape in the conference. But to do that, we will have to be at the top of our game."
The Pirates will return home to Bunting Field Oct. 5., when they host Elon after a midweek match in Winston-Salem against Wake Forest on Oct. 1.
