Sept. 7, 2007

Final Stats

Cullowhee, N.C. - The Western Carolina women's soccer team kicked off their 2007 home season in grand fashion Friday night, scoring two early goals to defeat the Winthrop Eagles 2-0 at the Catamount Athletic Complex.

The win pushes the Catamount winning streak to three games, having gone unbeaten since dropping the first match of the season to Wyoming. Western has also defeated both the reigning Big South regular season champions in UNC Asheville, and tournament champions, Winthrop, in consecutive games. Excluding that initial loss, they have outscored their opponents 8-1 in the three wins, not allowing a second half goal yet.

Western was able to light up the scoreboard first a mere 3:47 into the first half, sophomore forward Shannon Fowkes took a pinpoint through pass from teammate Bri Cunningham and was able to chip the ball over the Winthrop goalkeeper's head and into the back of the net to open the scoring for the Catamounts.

Western was able to utilize their abundance of team speed to keep the attack on the Eagles throughout the first half, dominating the time of possession and forcing Winthrop to play the majority of the half on the defensive. At the 20:14 mark of the first, preseason All-Southern Conference pick Heather Dittmer fired a rocket of a shot from approximately 30 yards into the upper right hand corner of the net. Dittmer was able to shake off two defenders to free herself for the attempt, and chalked up her first goal on the season.

Coach Tammy DeCesare knew that getting the early lead was vital to her team's success.

"It's always a sigh a relief (to get the early lead), because as the game progresses, you are able to make some mistakes," she said. "When you have the lead, you can keep pushing and pushing as the time clicks off."

The second half was characterized by a step up in the physical nature of the game on both sides of the ball. Winthrop used their size advantage to try and take Western out of their game plan and force them into a rough and tumble match without success. DeCesare countered this with a barrage of fresh players substituting into the game, giving plenty of rest to everyone and making sure that whoever was on the field was at 100 percent and nullifying the Winthrop attacks.

Catamount Goalkeeper Caitlin Williams was barely tested in the game, having to make only three saves to record her first career shutout, and extend her streak of three consecutive halves without letting up a single goal. On the season, she has a goals scored against average of .061 and a save percentage of an impressive .882.

Season home openers have also been kind to the Cats lately. The win over Winthrop gives them a perfect 3-0 record in the first home match of the season since the opening of the Catamount Athletic Complex. A rowdy crowd of over 700 packed the Complex and gave the team an emotional boost right off the bat, none of which surprises Coach DeCesare.

"This place generates energy for this team," she said. "This is like hallowed ground here. If I could play every game in Cullowhee, I think I would schedule it. I think the energy, especially here under the lights; it is electric for the girls."

The team will now look to take their winning ways on the road when they travel to ACC and national powerhouse Clemson on Sunday afternoon. Clemson is currently ranked fifth in the southeast region and 27th nationally by SoccerBuzz Magazine. However, Coach says the team is not intimidated by the Tigers and truly believes they have a chance.

"I told them we're good enough to win. If they believe that and let it consume them, I feel like we have a good chance. We don't believe Clemson is something superior to us, and we feel like we can win," concluded DeSesare.

Live stats and play by play will be available on GameTracker through www.Catamountsports.com.