CULLOWHEE, N.C. – Freshman Mackenzie Megill connected on a header in the 78th minute that allowed top-seeded Western Carolina to advance to the 2023 Southern  Conference Women's Soccer Finals with a 1-0 victory over fourth-seed Furman on Sunday afternoon at the Catamount Athletics Complex.

Western Carolina climbs to 12-4-3 on the season and Furman finishes with a 7-5-7 mark. With the win, WCU advances to the SoCon Championship against #3 seed Samford which defeated #2 ETSU by the score of 2-0 on Sunday in Johnson City.

"I am really proud of this group. I feel like this has been our story all year as we've had a different person up every match," commented head coach Chad Miller. "Even after we had to adjust our lineup in the first half, we still had solid contributions across the field from everyone." 

Neither team was able to convert on chances in the opening 45 minutes as the Catamounts put three shots on frame from Maddie Lopez, Sofia Goclowski and Maggie Lloyd, but Furman's goalkeeper Addison Corn came up with all three stops.

In the early stages of the second half, sophomore Leanne Trudel came up with three critical stops to keep the Paladins off the scoreboard. In the 78th minute, Goclowksi linked up with Megill for her first career goal as she headed the ball into the back of the net to push the Catamounts in front 1-0.

"Mackenzie has continued to battle on the field even with some opportunities not going her way this season and was happy to see a pair of freshman connect on the goal," added Miller. "This is what makes this team so special to me is this group is very selfless. They're in it for each other and today was a prime example."

The Paladins attempted a final push in putting together chances in the final minutes but Trudell and the WCU defense held strong and allowed the Catamounts to punch their ticket to the SoCon Championship.

The shutout marks the 11th clean sheet for WCU on the season including eight solo shutouts from Trudel. She is now tied for third in the single-season record book for shutouts in a season with her eighth of the year. WCU also moved into a tie for second as a team for shutouts in a season with the result on Sunday.

WCU held an 11-7 shot advantage with a 6-4 lead in shots on goal. Naya Marcil led the way with three shots as Goclowski had a pair of shots. Six different WCU players put shots on goal including Megill's game winner. Trudel totaled four saves on the afternoon as Corn for the Paladins had five stops in goal.

Western Carolina is set to compete in the tournament championship for the fifth time in program history and the first since 2017. The Catamounts look for their first tournament title since winning it all back in 2008, the second of two tourney crowns for WCU.

Next Sunday's final will be played in Cullowhee with kickoff set for 2 p.m. against #3 Samford. WCU defeated the Bulldogs to begin SoCon play back on Sept. 21 in Birmingham by the score of 1-0. In the victory, Abbie Lainhart tallied the lone goal of the match in the first half to give WCU the victory.

The match will be streamed on ESPN+ (paid subscription required), with live stats on CatamountSports.com.

"I just want to thank all the alumni for coming back this afternoon," added Miller. "KKSB is alive and what this program is all about people and relationships."