CULLOWHEE, N.C. – Western Carolina women's soccer opened preseason practice on Tuesday as the Catamounts assembled for both a morning and afternoon training session.
 
After holding preseason photo day on Monday, the 32-member squad opened practice Tuesday morning with an emphasis placed on conditioning. During the afternoon, the team worked on possession, playing together, and concluded practice with a finishing drill.
 
"We're excited to be back and get going," said head coach Chad Miller. "A big part of the morning session was fitness, seeing where we're at. The group did an unbelievable job with preparation fitness-wise."
 
Miller added, "This afternoon, we started to learn each other and learn how we play off each other. We're trying to focus on getting back into it as a group, meeting each other, and becoming a team."
 
WCU will continue practicing leading up to a pair of preseason home exhibition contests. The Catamounts welcome Marshall to the Catamount Athletic Complex on Saturday for a Noon match followed by a visit from former Southern Conference foe Davidson on Tuesday, Aug. 8 at 6 p.m.
 
"We'll use these two matches to see where we're good, where we need to improve, and then phase our training based on those two results and see what we need to work on," said Miller.
 
The Catamounts open the regular season at mountain-rival UNC Asheville on Thurs., Aug. 17 with the first seasonal home match against Queens University of Charlotte on Sun., Aug. 20. The official Southern Conference preseason coaches poll and All-Conference teams are to be unveiled on Thursday, Aug. 10 as the season rapidly approaches.
 
Keep track of everything related to Catamount women's soccer and WCU Athletics through its social media outlets on Facebook (fb.com/catamountsports), Instagram (@wcu_catamounts), and Twitter (@catamounts, @Catamountsoccer).
 
 

Gallery: (8-1-2023) WSOC First Practice 8-1-23