Cullowhee, N.C. – The long-awaited matchup is here as Western Carolina women's soccer travels to Greenville, S.C., and the Stone Soccer Stadium to face the Furman Paladins Thursday night. The heavyweight bout between chromatic Southern Conference rivals is set to kick at 7 p.m. as all eyes will be on the pivotal purple matchup, the lone league contest on the midweek schedule.
Postponed from its original date of Sep. 27, due to the impact of Hurricane Helene, the penultimate match of the regular season for both teams has major implications for both the regular-season title race and home field advantage in the upcoming SoCon tournament. Six points in conference play are up for grabs for both the Catamounts and Paladins with two matches remaining before the conference championship.
WCU closes on the road at fourth-place Furman on Thursday before heading to third-place Chattanooga on Sunday (Oct. 27). Furman splits the spectrum with the league-leading and defending champion Catamounts before visiting last-place The Citadel to end the regular season. Second-place Samford has only three points left on the table as the Bulldogs host sixth-place UNC Greensboro to close the schedule.
The importance of the final two matches exceeds just the hoisting of regular-season hardware. The top-two seeds play host to both the quarterfinal and semifinal matches with the championship match going to the home site of the highest-remaining seed.
Breaking Down the Scenarios:
Carrying a two-point lead over second-place Samford (19-17) entering the week, a Western Carolina win in EITHER of its remaining two matches would give the Catamounts a minimum of 22 points in conference play and clinch back-to-back outright regular-season titles for the Purple & Gold, as well as the overall number one seed in the tournament.
A draw on Thursday would give the Catamounts 20 points and secure at least a share of the regular-season crown, but leaves the door open for second-place Samford to tie atop the standings depending on results from the final regular season matchups when WCU travels to Chattanooga and the Bulldogs face UNCG.
A loss to the Paladins creates the potential of a three-way tie between WCU, Furman, and Samford at 20 points atop the standings with all three teams having to resort to tiebreakers to determine seeding.
Thursday's Matchup:
Western Carolina (10-2-3, 6-0-1 SoCon – 19 pts) at Furman (8-5-3, 4-1-2 SoCon – 14 pts)
Greenville, S.C. | 7:00 p.m. | Stone Stadium
Live stats: https://tinyurl.com/4u9wzhe8
Watch (ESPN+): https://tinyurl.com/y8hfhnd5
Looking Around the Southern Conference:
Thursday, Oct. 24:
#1 Western Carolina at #4 Furman, 7 p.m.
Friday, Oct. 25:
South Carolina State at VMI, 3 p.m.
Sunday, Oct. 27:
#1 Western Carolina at #3 Chattanooga, 2 p.m.
#2 Samford vs. #6 UNC Greensboro, 2 p.m.
#4 Furman at #10 The Citadel, 2 p.m.
#5 Mercer at #9 Wofford, 2 p.m.
#7 ETSU at #8 VMI, 2 p.m.
SoCon Standings (games remaining/maximum points available)
#1 Western Carolina, 19 points – (2 gms, 25 pts)
#2 Samford, 17 points (1 gm, 20 pts)
#3 Chattanooga, 15 points (1 gm, 18 pts)
#4 Furman, 14 points (2 gms, 20 pts)
#5 Mercer, 14 points (1 gm, 17 pts)
#6 UNCG, 12 points (1 gm, 15 pts)
#7 ETSU, 9 points (1 gm, 12 pts)
#8 VMI, 4 points (2 gms, 1 SoCon – 7 pts)
#9 Wofford, 4 points (1 gm, 7 pts)
#10 The Citadel, 1 point (1 gm, 4 pts)
Quick Cuts:
The Catamounts and Paladins share the pitch for the 34th time in program history on Thursday evening in Greenville, S.C. WCU trails in the all-time series 9-23-1, but snapped a three-game skid in the series in the SoCon semifinals last season with a 1-0 win. Furman has been strong against SoCon opponents at home in recent years, though the Paladins recently fell 1-0 in Greenville to a scrappy Chattanooga Mocs squad. The Paladins are 5-4-1 at home this season and the Catamounts are 4-2-1 on the road, most recently notching a road 2-0 road win at UNCG.
At this point in the season, both teams have seen plenty of common opposition, sharing eight opponents on the year. In the nonconference schedule, both squads faced Presbyterian and UNC Asheville. The Catamounts earned a pair of wins over the two Big South representatives, downing UNCA 6-1 in the home opener and holding on for a 1-0 win over Presbyterian. Furman battled for a 2-1 win over the Bulldogs but fell 2-1at home to the Blue Hose.
Against six common SoCon foes to date, the Catamounts are 6-0 record with Furman going 4-2. The Purple and Gold posted a 14-1 goal differential against those teams, while Furman earned a 13-3 differential.
Players to Watch:
With two of the top offenses in the SoCon going head-to-head late in the season, GK Leanne Trudel and the Catamount backline will look to stifle a potent Furman attack. The reigning SoCon Defensive Player of The Week, Trudel has collected 11 shutouts so far this season thanks in part to the superb efforts of the defensive quartet in front of her while also posting a .941 save percentage in conference play but has only faced 48 shots (16 on goal) with Becca Campbell, Abbie Wise, Samantha Whitaker, and Mary Mueth dominating the defensive third. The foursome has tallied 440+ minutes in conference play this season, with Maddie Lopez and freshman Rylie Niemeyer waiting in the wings with fresh legs.
Forward Isabella DeMarco found her groove in recent weeks, recording three goals in her last three matches. DeMarco is tied with Milla Syska and Naya Marcil for the team lead in goals in conference play as the trio has four goals apiece. Syska has connected with DeMarco on the game-winning goal in two of the last three outings.
Sofia Goclowski is knocking on the door of another breakout performance. The sophomore forward is second on the team in shots during the conference season with 21 and is tied with Milla Syska for the most shots on frame at 11.
The Furman offense is run through a trio of Paladins as Jenny Jacobson, Tara Katz, and Nieva Gaither have scored four goals this season. All four of Gaither's goals have come in conference play as the fifth-year senior lit up the cage against Mercer, VMI, ETSU, and Wofford.
Defensively, freshman goalkeeper Reese DeJong has taken command between the posts for the Paladins. The Huntersville, N.C. product has recorded at least four saves in her last four outings and has posted 23 saves and a .920 save percentage in SoCon play, conceding goals to only Mercer and Chattanooga this conference season.
Up Next for The Catamounts:
The Purple and Gold close out the 2024 regular season with the Chattanooga Mocs on Sunday, Oct. 27. Kickoff of the final match of the regular season is set for 2 p.m. at Finley Stadium. The Catamounts then enter the post-season slate with the 2024 Southern Conference Women's Soccer Championship scheduled to start Oct. 29 with the opening-round match before the eight-team tournament commences on Nov. 1 on the campus of the top two seeds from the regular season.
