Soccer Plays Final Pair of Home Matches on Senior Weekend

Senior Natalia Icen honored on Sunday

CULLOWHEE, N.C. – Western Carolina women's soccer closes out the home portion of its unique 2021 spring season hosting Southern Conference leader Furman at 6 p.m. Friday and closes out the weekend welcoming Wofford at 6 p.m. Sunday.

Senior goalkeeper Natalia Icen will be honored before the game against the Terriers on Sunday.

FRIDAY – GAME PROGRAM | LIVE STATS | ESPN+
SUNDAY – GAME PROGRAM | LIVE STATS | ESPN+

AN INSIDE LOOK AT THE CATAMOUNTS:

Western Carolina and Furman meet for the 28th time on Friday. The Paladins lead the overall series 19-7-1. Furman has won the last two meetings with each of those two matches being 1-0 losses for the Catamounts. Western Carolina shocked No. 1 seed, Furman, in the 2017 SoCon Championships knocking off the Paladins 2-0 in the semi-final match. That win sparked the Catamounts' only winning streak in the series as WCU also defeated the Paladins 3-1 in Cullowhee in 2018. Overall, WCU is 3-9-1 at home against Furman.
On Sunday, Western Carolina and Wofford meet for the 25th time. Western Carolina tops the series 14-7-3 and has won the last five matches. The Catamounts have shutout the Terriers in four of the last five matches and won in overtime 2-1, in overtime, in the first round of the 2016 SoCon Championships. The Catamounts are 9-3 at home against the Terriers.
The Catamounts are coming off a 3-0 win over ETSU for its second conference win of the season. Junior Amber Van Den Berg scored a goal off her corner kick in the first half and added an assist on a Summit Dann goal in the second half as part of WCU's two second-half goals.
Regan Ward, Maryanne Kilgore, and Maggie Lloyd each lead the Catamounts with two goals a-piece.
Sophomore goalkeeper Melody Mezzina earned her third shutout of the season as WCU blanked ETSU. She has allowed seven goals and has a .99 goals-against average which ranks sixth in the SoCon. Her 28 saves on the season are tied for fourth in the conference. Her 91 career saves rank ninth in the WCU record books.

AN INSIDE LOOK AT OPPONENTS:

Furman enters Friday's match in Cullowhee without a loss in conference play after playing to a 1-1 tie with Samford on Sunday, Mar. 21, and a record of 5-0-1. The Paladins have allowed just two goals in conference play outscoring opponents 9-2 and earned four shutouts. Isabella Guitierrez leads Furman with three goals and two assists.
Wofford will face ETSU on Friday before traveling to Western Carolina on Sunday. The Terriers have lost two-straight matches falling to Samford (2-0) and Chattanooga (1-0) having been shutout in their last two matches. Mia Bookhard paces Wofford with three goals.

For the latest information on Western Carolina women's basketball, follow @catamounts for @catamountsoccer on Twitter or go to www.catamountsports.com.

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Players Mentioned

#5 Summit Dann: D; 5' 6"; Sophomore; Science Hill HS

#33 Natalia Icen: GK; 5' 9"; Senior; Alan C. Pope HS

#6 Maryanne Kilgore: D; 5' 7"; Senior; Jefferson HS

#0 Melody Mezzina: GK; 5' 4"; Sophomore; St. Marguerite D' Youville

#14 Amber Van Den Berg: D; 5' 10"; Junior; Het Stedelijik Lyceum Zuid

#30 Regan Ward: MF; 5' 8"; Senior; Strongsville HS

Players Mentioned

#5 Summit Dann
: 5' 6"; Sophomore; Science Hill HS
: D

#33 Natalia Icen
: 5' 9"; Senior; Alan C. Pope HS
: GK

#6 Maryanne Kilgore
: 5' 7"; Senior; Jefferson HS
: D

#0 Melody Mezzina
: 5' 4"; Sophomore; St. Marguerite D' Youville
: GK

#14 Amber Van Den Berg
: 5' 10"; Junior; Het Stedelijik Lyceum Zuid
: D

#30 Regan Ward
: 5' 8"; Senior; Strongsville HS
: MF