Gameday: ECU Tries To Bounce Back At Charlotte

Game 7: ECU (2-3-1) at Charlotte (5-1-0)
Date	Sunday, September 15
Time	12 noon (EDT)
Location	Charlotte, N.C. (Transamerica Field)
Coverage	Live Stats \| Live Video
Social Media	Twitter: @ECUwsoccer Instagram: @ECUwsoccer Facebook: @ECUwsoccer

GREENVILLE, N.C. – After a setback at home ended a two-match winning streak, the ECU soccer team will try to bounce back with a road match at Charlotte on Sunday afternoon.

"Charlotte will be another tough opponent on the road," said head coach Jason Hamilton. "They have started off great so far this year."

ECU (2-3-1) dropped a hard-fought 2-1 match to Old Dominion on Thursday night, snapping a two-game winning streak for the Pirates. After going down 1-0, Tori Riggs scored her second goal of the season to level the score, but the Monarchs scored again with 13 minutes remaining to claim the win. Along with Riggs, Grace Doran is the only other Pirate with two goals this season. The ECU offense has already seen eight different players score a goal while 13 Pirates have recorded either a goal or an assist. In goal, Melanie Stiles has started all six games, making 18 saves.

"We have a lot of holes to fill right now due to all the players that are out," Hamilton said. "Our experienced players need to take on bigger roles and bring consistency while some of the less experience players need to take advantage of this opportunity. Our message to the team is that no one else is going to feel sorry for us, so we can't either. Just control what we can control."

Charlotte has gotten off to an outstanding start, currently holding a 5-1-0 record with the only loss coming to No. 25 Wake Forest. The 49ers have won three straight, including a 5-0 demolition of Western Carolina and a 4-1 victory against Campbell. Megan Greene leads the team in scoring (six goals, one assist) after bagging hat tricks against both Western Carolina and Campbell. Julia Grainda also has 13 points, having scored five goals to go with three helpers. Four of Grainda's goals have been game-winners, a number that leads the country. In goal, Abby Stapleton has started all six games, racking up three shutouts and 10 saves.

Charlotte holds a slim 8-6-1 record in the all-time series. ECU is 4-1-0 in the past five meetings between the schools, including a 3-0 win at home last season. Riggs scored the opening goal while Daria Draovitch and Jayda Hylton-Pelaia had assists. Charlotte's most recent victory in the series came in 2017 when the 49ers scored two second-half goals to win 2-1 despite a goal by Cashlin Copley. The Pirates are just 2-5-0 at Charlotte, although they have won two of the past three meetings there.

"Right now, the focus needs to be getting better and growing over the next three games to prepare for conference play," added Hamilton. "We want to limit our costly mistakes and be more competitive."

Kickoff is scheduled for 12 noon on Sunday. Fans can stream the match here or follow the live stats here.

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Players Mentioned

Cashlin Copley

Grace Doran

Daria Draovitch

Jayda Hylton-Pelaia

Tori Riggs

Melanie Stiles

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