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One thing that cannot be said about the ECU soccer teams, is that they shy away from the best teams in the country. The women, hoping that the third time is the charm, are at 9th-ranked Wake Forest tonight and on Sunday, the men play host to 3rd-ranked Saint Louis in a key conference tilt for the program.

(ECU SID)

Rachel Hils is one of the rising stars at ECU.

Rob Donnenwirth's team has taken on a couple of other top-10 teams already this season, faring well on the scoreboard but not in the win-loss column. Against Texas (then-ranked No. 5), the Pirates fell 5-3 and then against Florida (then-ranked No. 6) they fell short 2-1. If improvement is the key, tonight's opportunity may be the best yet for the women.

"Wake Forest is an elite team," Donnenwirth said. "They just beat two top-10 opponents and are currently ranked 9th in the nation. They have a lot of weapons and play a very attractive style of soccer. We will need to be at our best. Being a Wednesday game, we don't have a lot of time to prepare, so (Tuesday) will be a crash course on how to defend them."

Still, ECU is getting better each time out, despite some lapses - like last week's 3-0 blanking at the hands of a talented, but not that talented, Tulane squad. Individually, though, Donnenwirth is seeing the requisite improvements.

"Sophomore Melissa Penney was very good for us at forward (last week)," Donnenwirth pointed out. "She didn't score but her work rate and passing helped us keep Houston on their heals. Rachel Hils played very well at center midfielder. She is getting more confidence every game."

Against Wake, Donnenwirth's club will need every bit of it, but the opportunity exists, particularly if the attackers can turn in a game like they did against Houston.

On the men's side, tonight's trip to Wilmington represents the rekindling of a rivalry that spans back to the old Colonial Athletic Association days. A battle for Down East bragging rights.

With many of the players having played against one another in high school over the years, this game more than any other, brings out the best in both clubs.

“UNC-W will be a great game,” coach Michael Benn said. “The past four years, each game has been decided by a single goal. Last year, they beat us 1-0 to stop a three-game winning streak for us. A lot of the players know each other and that adds to our great rivalry. I think that both teams and programs are in a similar spot.”

The Pirates (3-3-2) would love to get back on the winning side after last season's loss to the Seahawks (5-2-1).

Not that a battle-royal with a rival won't be enough to stoke the fires for a great week of soccer, but the Pirates turn around and play host to 3rd-ranked Saint Louis on Sunday.

(ECU SID)

Joe Ellington tallied his

1st goal for 2003 last week.

“Saint Louis is an awesome team,” coach Benn said. “They are the most talented team in the conference and have had a great start to the season. They are the team to beat in C-USA. Their loss to Louisville is not a shocker. Louisville is a great team and Saint Louis is very young. They are bound to go through some growing pains as the season goes on. I think that their loss shows our guys that they can be beaten, but I know that they will show up with their best effort.”

That loss to Louisville - at home no less - reveals a lot about a very talented, but very young visiting Billikens team. The Pirates will have to get out on attack early and try and deal a few blows early because if the Billikens get the best of the early minutes, it could be a tough one for ECU.

Still, if there is nothing else to be learned already this season, it is that the Conference-USA membership is very talented, but also very close in talent level, as demonstrated by some of the league results of late.

“We can beat any team in the conference," Benn stated. "We can also be beaten by any team in the conference. Conference-USA is one of the elite soccer conferences in the country and the fact that we can compete with these teams with a realistic expectation of winning speaks to the growth of our program.

"Three years ago, we were hoping to be competitive; now our players are expecting to win. For us to be successful, we have to prepare and play our best soccer. We cannot concern ourselves with things that are outside of our control.”

The Pirates hope to demonstrate those very points on Sunday and get back into the thick of the league hunt.

On Friday, once again the Pirates found themselves in a deep hole early in the game and once again, they managed to climb out and rally. This time, however, they were able to collect a point for a 2-2 double-overtime draw with Memphis in C-USA action.

Memphis (3-3-1, 0-1-1 C-USA) tallied twice inside the first seven minutes of play to stun the Pirates. Daniel Dobson found the twine first for Memphis when he sent a blistering shot by ECU keeper Brian Pope from 25 yards out. Omar Jarun tallied his 5^th goal of the season two minutes later when he got one by Pope.

As the team did against No. 7 UAB, the Pirates rallied in the second half as Pope (7 saves) dominated in the pipes and ECU took the attack to the Tigers. A pair of Swansboro (NC) products hooked up in the 42^nd minute to get the Pirates on the board when freshman Chris Mobley slipped a deft pass to a racing senior Joe Ellington who collected the ball and sent it past a diving Sebastian Vecchio in the Memphis net.

The Pirates then leveled in the 90^th minute to salvage the draw and earn a valuable C-USA point. Freshman Mark Djurovski tallied his first goal of the season finishing on well-served corner from Reed Avren, who notched his league-leading 8^th assist of the season.

“We were happy to get a point on the road at Memphis,” coach Benn said. “We started off poorly allowing two goals in the first seven minutes. The guys never give up and were able to fight back and earn an important point. With six conference games left, every point is important. Memphis is a talented squad that can score bunches of goals. I was pleased that we shut them out for the final 83 minutes of regulation and 20 minutes of overtime, but we have to start matches with that same intensity.

On Sunday, ECU found the Tennessee road trip less friendly, dropping a 1-0 decision to SEC foe Vanderbilt in a lackluster performance from the Pirates. Vandy (3-3-3) got the only goal it needed when freshman forward Josh Medcalf tallied in the 40^th minute.

The Pirates go the better of the attack with an 18-13 advantage in shots on goal, but the Commodores keeper Jamie Burns turned away the six best chances the Pirates had.

“Vanderbilt was a difficult game for us,” coach Benn said. “I thought that our effort and competitiveness was good, but we just never got in sync with one another. Our touches and passes were off the mark all day and we just could not sustain anything positive in the attack.”

“We can beat any team in the conference. We can also be beaten by any team in the conference. Conference-USA is one of the elite soccer conferences in the country and the fact that we can compete with these teams with a realistic expectation of winning speaks to the growth of our program. Three years ago, we were hoping to be competitive; now our players are expecting to win. For us to be successful, we have to prepare and play our best soccer. We cannot concern ourselves with things that are outside of our control.”

Tonight, an old rivalry is renewed as the Pirates travel to old CAA nemesis Wilmington, looking to collect an out-of-conference win. It won’t come easy as the Seahawks are a strong team coming off back-to-back shutout victories.

It is hard to believe that the Seahawks only return two starters from last year, yet are boasting a 5-2-1 record. The strength of the team lies in an aggressive, attacking midfield led by sophomores Nick Acosta (5 assists) and Adam Currey (goal). Acosta often connects with sophomore forward Sam Leger (3 goals), the team’s leading scorer. Senior defender Adam Stauffer (2 goals) anchors the defense in front of a pair of goalies splitting time, though doing well. Both Brad Knighton (0.52 gaa & 24 saves) and Mike Shaughness (1.20 gaa & 9 saves) are both likely to see action.

“UNC-W will be a great game,” coach Benn said. “The past four years, each game has been decided by a single goal. Last year, they beat us 1-0 to stop a three-game winning streak for us. A lot of the players know each other and that adds to our great rivalry. I think that both teams and programs are in a similar spot.”

On Friday, one of Conference-USA’s premier squads arrives in Greenville, presenting an opportunity for the Pirates to shake up the conference picture. Saint Louis, ranked third nationally, boasts a stellar lineup top-to-bottom and will present a difficult challenge for ECU.

However, given the Billikens 0-2 upset loss to Louisville last week, the Pirates can take solace in knowing that they are a beatable opponent. Still stinging, however, Saint Louis will be coming in ready to attack and get back to winning. The Billikens boast two of the league’s top scoring threats in John Will (4 goals, 5 assists) and Veded Ibisevic (5 goals, 2 assists). Also strong in the attack is John DiRaimondo (3 goals, 2 assists).

Defensively, the Billikens may be without starting sweeper Nick Gannon who has missed three games with a knee injury. However, the leader in the backline, Kevin Wickart is as strong as ever, coming off a week that landed him on the national team of the week. Andy Pusateri has filled in nicely for Gannon at central defender. Goalie Martin Hutton is coming off his worst performance of the season, yielding four tallies to Western Illinois in a shocking draw. Hutton saw his goals against average climb to 1.05 as a result, though he is still one of the top keepers in the league.

ECU’s Matt Kowaleski is statistically among the nation’s leaders in a number of offensive categories. He is tied for 19^th with Memphis’ attacker Andy Metcalf for points at 12 and is rated 26^th behind USF’s Hunter West (14^th) in goals per game with 2.00…In ECU’s 2-2 draw to Memphis, midfielder Reed Avren tallied another assist – his eigth – to build on his league-leading effort this year as C-USA’s top set-up artist. Avren is currently 2^nd in the nation in the category of assists per game with 1.17 and is tied for 1^st in the country for tops in a game when he had three against High Point in September…The Pirates had a pair of players tally their first goals of the season. Senior Joe Ellington – who led ECU in scoring as a freshman and sophomore – tallied his first in 2003 and freshman Mark Djurovski notched his first collegiate tally against Memphis…Despite being dominated in the attack by a lopsided margin of 5-15 in shots on goal and 2-9 in corner kicks, Cincinnati beat cross-town rival Xavier 2-1 on Wednesday, marking the 20^th win for the Bearcats in its rivalry with the Musketeers. Cincy owns a 20-7-5 all-time mark against Xavier – of the Atlantic 10 Conference – and has not lost to its rival since 1996…Saint Louis – ranked No. 3 nationally – needed two Will John goals in the final five minutes of regulation to hold off what would have been a shocking defeat at the hands of Western Illinois on Wednesday as the Billikens, unbeaten, salvaged a unexpected 4-4 draw with WIU. The Louisville loss ended a 30-game unbeaten streak at home for Saint Louis…When Louisville captured the Kentucky Invitational title by virtue of a 2-1 win over Butler and a 1-0 blanking of Central Florida, it marked the 5^th tournament title of the season for Conference-USA. Third-ranked Saint Louis and 9^th-ranked UAB have two championships thus far this season for the league…Third-ranked Saint Louis is perfect this season in overtime matches with three victories in extra minutes this season, with all three of those matches on the road…C-USA boasts a 29-21-11 mark out of conference this season as of Wednesday’s games…The league has faired well against ranked teams, thus far going 6-2-3 against the best teams in the nation…9^th-ranked UAB’s star sophomore midfielder Leandro de Oliveira was named last week’s C-USA Offensive Player of the Week while Louisville goalkeeper Brad Solokowski – a senior – was named the Defensive Player of the Week. De Oliveira was also named to the Soccer America national team of the week…Charlotte attacker Juan Munoz-Airey tallied his 15^th career goal in Charlotte’s loss to No. 3 Saint Louis…Marquette’s Chris Lee is the Golden Eagles hot scorer right now, having tallied the team’s only goals at their Marquette Invitational last weekend. Lee tallied the game-winner against South Florida in a 1-0 win and scored the only Marquette goal in a 2-1 loss to Washington…Memphis goalie Sebastian Vecchio recorded his first collegiate shutout last week with a 2-0 blanking of Iona…Saint Louis freshman Ryan Wileman tallied his first collegiate goal and it was a big one. Wileman tallied in the 104^th minute for the Billikens to defeat Charlotte in Saint Louis’ C-USA opener.

The following table lists the leading scorers in 2003 for Conference-USA through Monday, September 29:

Player

Team

Goals

Assists

Total

Points

BIRD, Simon	Louisville	6	3	15
WEST, Hunter	South Florida	7	0	14
JOHN, Will	Saint Louis	4	5	13
IBISEVIC, Vedad	Saint Louis	5	2	12
KOWALESKI, Matt	East Carolina	5	2	12
METCALF, Andy	Memphis	5	2	12
JARUN, Omar	Memphis	5	1	11
PUSEK, Marin	UAB	3	4	10
KOHLMEYER, Blair	Marquette	4	1	9
MONTEIRO, Jersun	UAB	3	3	9
De OLIVEIRA, Leandro	UAB	3	2	8
DiRAIMONDO, John	Saint Louis	3	2	8
FRANKS, Floyd	Charlotte	3	2	8
HELM, Drew	South Florida	2	4	8
AVREN, Reed	East Carolina	0	7	7
GARDNER, Josh	Cincinnati	2	3	7
LEE, Chris	Marquette	3	1	7
POMEROY, Ryan	Louisville	3	1	7
ROJO, Luke	DePaul	3	1	7
TERMINESI, Marco	Louisville	2	3	7
DEUTSCH, Brian	East Carolina	3	0	6
MUPIER, Mira	Charlotte	3	0	6
RAYO, Jose	UAB	2	2	6
O’BRIEN, Dayton	Memphis	2	1	5
SPITZER, Mickey	UAB	1	3	5
WILLIAMS, Jonathon	Louisville	2	1	5

On Friday, the Pirates hoped to keep things rolling in C-USA but the only thing rolling on the road at Westfeldt Soccer Facility in New Orleans was the Tulane Green Wave. The Green Wave (6-3-1, 3-1-0 C-USA) took the attack to the Pirates and dominated the contest en route to a somewhat embarrassing – for ECU – win over the visitors, 3-0.

Tulane tallied the game-winner in the 35^th minute when Jessica Traver finished from Lindsay Morris. The Green Wave iced with goals from Jackie Obert and Morris, respectively.

“Tulane is a good team,” coach Donnewirth said. “We possessed the ball well but we were terrible in transition to defense. Once we lost the ball we did not communicate and get back on defense as hard as we should have. This cost us. Before we knew it, we were 3-0 down and our team didn’t react well.”

On Sunday, the Pirates bounced back with a 3-2 win at Houston, to salvage the road trip. Shaking off the embarrassing loss against Tulane, ECU was strong enough to grab a slim victory over one of the league’s struggling clubs in Houston (2-8-1, 0-4-0 C-USA).

The Pirates tallied first when junior Sarah Stoltz found the net in the 7^th minute.

Houston, however, responded with the equalizer and then pressed ahead on goals by Meghan Moreo and Nikki Hawkins, respectively. Just before the intermission, ECU freshman Rachel Hils found twine after collected a pass from fellow frosh Anastasia Nikas in the 44^th minute.

Pirate top scorer Meghan McCallion tallied the game-winner on a service from Penny Perrott who headed over a cross from Nikas, who collected her second set up of the contest

“Houston was a good win,” coach Donnenwirth said. “It was ‘back to the wall time’ for us. If we lost, we would have been playing catch up in the standings. After we scored, we let up and gave two goals away, again in transition. The difference was we had a fighting attitude to get back.”

“(League results of late) just shows that the margin of victory is very slim. A few players lost to graduation, a few injuries, a slight loss of focus, and parity is what can happen. There is still a long way to go. We have to play a lot of these teams and they will be playing with desperation"

Tonight,.ECU takes on another top-10 team, looking for more than a moral victory. In Wake Forest, the Pirates face a squad that is a whopping 13-0-1 against C-USA, including a four wins over ECU by a combined total of 16-2 in goals.

However, this is a new year and the Pirates have demonstrated that they are certainly capable of playing with the best in the country – they just haven’t proven they can BEAT the best in the country. Perhaps the third time will be the charm after having fallen to Texas and Florida.

Wake has one of the nation’s top goalies in junior Kenna Healy, who has logged all 830 minutes between the pipes for the Demon Deacons and is boasting a 0.65 goals against average on the season. The team is also strong in the attack with players like Taylor Toombs (4 goals, assist), Elizabeth Remy (4 goals, assist), A.B. Robbins (2 goals, 2 assists) and Sarah Kozey (3 goals, 5 assists) – the team’s top attacker.

“Wake Forest is an elite team,” coach Donnenwirth said. They just beat two top-10 opponents and are currently ranked 9^th in the nation. They have a lot of weapons and play a very ‘attractive’ style of soccer. We will need to be at our best. Being a Wednesday game, we don’t have a lot of time to prepare so today will be a crash course on how we will defend them.”

On Sunday, ECU hosts a struggling Elon team. The Phoenix have found the going hard on the attacking third, having only tallied eight goals on the season. The upside is that Elon tallied three in a win last week against The Citadel.

The Phoenix attack relies on Kate Schabo (3 goals), Kristen Albert (2 goals, assist), and Kerry McCarron (2 goals, assist).

Goalie Kara Zagol is a good keeper, considering that she has been constantly under attack. In 716 minutes between the pipes, Zagol has given up 17 goals and carries a 2.14 goals against average into the contest.

“Elon is struggling this year but we won’t forget our embarrassing loss to them last year,” Donnenwirth said. “I expect us to be ready.”

ECU had to move its C-USA opener to the Charlotte on Friday due to Hurricane Isabel. With the 49ers on the road Friday, it was a great gesture of conference and state sisterhood on the part of UNCC to lend a team a field…For Charlotte, things have not gotten better. UAB standout Jill Knottek tallied twice on Friday to lead the Blazers to a league win over Charlotte, doling out yet another loss to last season’s regular season champs…In a league stunner on Friday, Texas Christian dealt preseason C-USA top pick Cincinnati an unexpected 2-1 loss at home, a place the Bearcats don’t oft lose. Amy Van Zandt had a huge game for TCU, finding twine twice for the Horned Frogs. Goalie Katie Buchanon came up with big saves down the stretch to hold for the win in an evenly-contested game…Who else would DePaul tap to take a critical PK – resulting from a hand ball – with just two minutes in the game than league-leading scorer Julianne Sitch. Sitch, a savvy veteran, tallied her 6^th goal of the season by calmly burying a penalty kick with two minutes left in regulation to beat Houston. With the win, DePaul ended a three-game C-USA winless streak dating back to last season…When Louisville and Memphis played to a 1-1 double-OT draw on Friday, it marked the first time in the 7-game history between the two teams that they have played to a tie. For the record, Louisville leads the series 4-2-1…Perhaps exposing Southern Mississippi’s out of conference schedule a bit, Saint Louis ravaged the visiting Golden Eagles 4-0 to open league play for both teams. Southern Miss had been on a tear, bringing a 5-0-1 record into the C-USA opener at Saint Louis, but the Billikens found the going quite easy, tallying two goals in each half in front of a crowd of 1,052 fans at Hermann Stadium. Saint Louis dominated the attack, owning a 22-3 advantage in shots on frame…UAB is 3-0 so far this season in matches decided by one goal…Cincinnati’s Tasha Wagner moved to 4^th all-time at the school on the career assists list with her 21^st…In Southern Miss’s 2-0 win over Middle Tennessee State last week, Carly Barkley tallied her 4^th game-winner already this season…Talk about taking care of business, Tulane reserve goalie Megan Morey not only came up with seven big saves in the Wave’s stunning 1-1 tie of archrival LSU, but she also assisted – from the goalie position – on the goal that tied the game…UAB’s Jenny Rynders was named the Most Valuable Player at the UAB Nike Classic. Teammate Briana McCarty joined Rynders as an all-tournament selection at the Classic…Cincinnati needed two penalty kicks to rally back to beat Memphis on Sunday, ending a three-game losing streak for the Bearcats…Charlotte’s woes continued as the 2002 league champions were handed their seventh loss of the season courtesy of South Florida on Sunday…DePaul is off to its best-ever start in its eight years of competition on a varsity level, including being 2-0 in the league for the first time ever.

The following table lists the leading scorers in 2003 for Conference-USA through Sunday, September 28: