Postgame Notes - vs. Samford (SoCon Finals)

Postgame Notes
#1 Western Carolina 1, #3 Samford 0
Catamount Athletics Complex
Cullowhee, N.C. | Sunday, Nov. 5, 2023
Att: 1,389

With the Win:

Western Carolina earns its third SoCon Women's Soccer Championship and the first since 2008;
Chad Miller picked up his 111th career win as the head coach for WCU and the 210th of his collegiate coaching career;
The 2023 Catamount women's soccer team moved into a tie for fourth in the program's single-season record book for wins in a season with 13 … the mark was previously hit during the 2008 season which is the last time in program history WCU has had 13+ wins in a season.

Post-Match Notes:

WCU's defensive performance carried over from both the quarterfinal and semifinal matches last weekend as the Catamounts held the Bulldogs off the scoresheet marking WCU's third straight shutout in the SoCon Championship;
Sunday marked the 12th shutout for WCU on the season amongst its 13 wins ... Western Carolina has only allowed one goal during its 13 victories throughout the 2023 campaign;
With her first-half goal, Naya Marcil moved into a tie for eighth in the single-season record book with her ninth goal of the season;
Marcil also moved into a tie with teammate Isabella DeMarco for fourth in the single-season record book for points as each player has 27 on the year;
WCU's two 1-0 shutout victories over the Samford Bulldogs in 2023 marks the first time in program history that WCU has won twice in the same season against Samford – and also represents WCU's first two-match win streak in the head-to-head history between the two schools;
GK Leanne Trudel claimed her 13th victory of the season tying Caitlin Williams who had 13 wins in 2008, tying for third in the single-season record book for Catamount goalies;
Paige McAra, Ava Robitaille, Alexis DeMarco, and Naya Marcil each were named to the SoCon Championship All-Tournament team with McAra garnering the Most Outstanding Player;
Katelyn Galbraith and Maggie Lloyd both received the Pinnacle Award honor following Sunday's victory ... the Pinnacle Award is given to the highest cumulative GPA among championship-eligible student-athletes on the winning team;
Soccer claimed its third SoCon title in program history on Sunday and the 60th SoCon crown in WCU athletics.
Sunday's announced attendance of 1,389 was a Catamount Athletics Complex record for soccer surpassing the previous benchmark set last August in the home match against Clemson ... the matchup with the Tigers had an announced crowd of 1,212;
In addition to a solid number of current Catamount student-athletes, Sunday's crowd included several of WCU women's soccer alum returning to campus to support the program;
WCU improved to 12-0-1 on the season when scoring first after Marcil's goal in the 11th minute of Sunday's championship match.