Gameday: ECU Hosts Charlotte

Game 8: Charlotte (4-2-0) at ECU (4-1-2)
Date	Sunday, September 9
Time	1:00 p.m. (EDT)
Location	Greenville, N.C. (Johnson Stadium)
Information	Game Notes (PDF)
Coverage	Live Stats \| Watch
Promotions	Tickets \| Promotions
Social Media	Twitter: @ECUwsoccer Instagram: @ECUwsoccer Facebook: @ECUwsoccer

GREENVILLE, N.C. - With just two games left during the non-conference portion of the schedule, the ECU women's soccer team will host Charlotte on Sunday afternoon in Johnson Stadium.

"Charlotte will be our toughest home opponent this season thus far," said head coach Jason Hamilton. "They like to keep the ball and are very athletic."

The Pirates returned home after their first loss of the season and shutout Campbell 2-0 on Thursday. ECU was able to muster a season-high 27 shots overall and 14 shots on goal, but could only find the back of the net twice. It was a pair of defenders that broke the seal. Jayda Hylton-Pelaia scored her first career goal in the first half on a long-range effort and then Kim Sanford sealed the game with a goal in the second period. Hylton-Pelaia became the sixth Pirate to score their first career ECU goal this season, joining Tori Riggs, Grace Doran, Jenna Dages, Carsen Parker and Kat Gonzalez.

ECU has had a good balance of offense and defense this season and ranks in the top 100 in the NCAA in a variety of categories. The Pirates' scoring offense ranks 58th with 2.14 goals per game and the 15 total goals ranks 22nd. ECU ranks 42nd with 17.0 shots per game. Defensively, ECU's save percentage of 0.833 and goals against average of 0.806 are 77th and 82nd, respectively, in the nation. Leading scorer Jenna Dages is 18th in the country with a pair of game-winning goals and her four goals place her 38th. Courtney Cash ranks 83rd in goals with three of her own. Finally, Melanie Stiles is 68th in total saves with 27 and 57th in shutouts with two.

Charlotte comes into Greenville with a 4-2-0 record and is on a two-match winning streak. The 49ers are coming off their first road win of the season, a 2-0 victory at Elon. Megan Greene leads the team with six points on two goals and two assists and has a team-high 25 shots. Jamie Fankhauser is the only other 49er with multiple goals, as she has a pair on just five shots. Charlotte's defense has been unbeatable in its four wins this season, as Abby Stapleton has notched her four shutouts in the wins. Charlotte was picked to finish in third place in the Preseason Conference USA Coaches poll.

"We need to be very organized as a group and limit our mistakes to be successful," Hamilton said. "We will need to be much more opportunistic in front of goal than we were last game. From here on out, we will not get as many chances in our games and we need to take advantage of them."

ECU is just 5-8-1 all-time against Charlotte, but has won two of the three matchups since the Pirates left Conference USA. Last season Charlotte claimed a 2-1 home win, but ECU won 3-2 in both 2016 and 2015. Cashlin Copley (2017) and Courtney Cash (2016) have both scored a goal against Charlotte in their careers. ECU is 3-3 all-time at home against Charlotte and 2-1 in Johnson Stadium.

Kickoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m, on Sunday afternoon. The first 100 fans will receive a ECU Soccer custom scarf. Fans can purchase tickets here.

Players Mentioned

Courtney Cash

Cashlin Copley

Jenna Dages

Grace Doran

Kat Gonzalez

Jayda Hylton-Pelaia

Carsen Parker

Tori Riggs

Kim Sanford

Melanie Stiles

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