Women's Soccer Southern Conference

Women?s Soccer Tourney Shifts to Cullowhee, N.C.

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Southern Conference Women’s Soccer Championships shifts to Western Carolina’s Catamount Athletic Complex in Cullowhee, N.C., this weekend for the semifinal and final matches, beginning Friday at 5 p.m. The top four seeds – Samford, Furman, Mercer and ETSU – will all be battling for the tournament title and the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Women’s Soccer Championship.

Both of Friday’s semifinal matches will air live on the SoCon Digital Network, while Sunday’s championship match, set for 1 p.m., will be broadcast live on ESPN3.

Regular-season champion and No. 1 seed Samford (13-7-0, 7-2-0 SoCon) will take on No. 4 seed ETSU (15-5-0, 6-3-0 SoCon) at 5 p.m. Friday. The Bucs won the regular-season meeting between the squads, downing the Bulldogs 3-1 to hand Samford one of its two league losses. ETSU, returning to the SoCon this season after a nine-year absence, last played in the SoCon Championship in 2003. The teams will be meeting in the SoCon tournament for the first time, as Samford joined the league in 2008.

The Bulldogs earned a spot in this year’s semifinals with a 6-0 win over No. 9 seed The Citadel in the quarterfinals on Nov. 1. ETSU, which boasts the nation’s top scoring offense, downed fifth-seeded UNCG 3-2 in overtime the following day to punch its ticket.

Including this season, Samford is 6-4-2 in seven tournament appearances, reaching the semifinals six times and winning the title in 2011. ETSU is 1-4 in five appearances in the tournament.

No. 2 seed Furman (13-3-2, 6-1-2 SoCon) will face No. 3 seed Mercer (12-5-2, 6-1-2 SoCon) at 7:30 p.m. Friday. The squads played to a scoreless draw on Oct. 5 and finished tied for second place in the SoCon standings, but the Paladins held the tiebreaker for the No. 2 seed by virtue of their 1-0 win over Samford later in the season.

Furman defeated No. 7 seed Wofford 3-2 on Nov. 2 to reach the semifinals for the fourth straight season, while Mercer edged No. 6 seed Western Carolina 2-1 that day for its first-ever SoCon Championship win.

Defending champion Furman will be seeking its sixth tournament title. The Paladins are 32-11-3 in 20 tournament appearances and have reached the semifinals 18 times and the championship final 12 times. Mercer, which is in its first season in the SoCon, will be making its semifinal debut.

2014 SoCon Women’s Soccer Championship

Oct. 29 (Wednesday)
First round (at higher seeds)
Match 1: No. 9 The Citadel 3, No. 8 VMI 0
Match 2: No. 7 Wofford 5, No. 10 Chattanooga 0

Nov. 1 (Saturday)
Quarterfinal round (at higher seeds)
Match 3: No. 1 Samford 6, No. 9 The Citadel 0

Nov. 2 (Sunday)
Quarterfinal round (at higher seeds)
Match 4: No. 4 ETSU 3, No. 5 UNCG 2 (OT)
Match 5: No. 2 Furman 3, No. 7 Wofford 2
Match 6: No. 3 Mercer 2, No. 6 Western Carolina 1

Nov. 7 (Friday)
Semifinals (Catamount Athletic Complex; Cullowhee, N.C.)
Match 7: No. 1 Samford vs. No. 4 ETSU, 5 p.m. (SoCon Digital Network)
Match 8: No. 2 Furman vs. No. 3 Mercer, 7:30 p.m. (SoCon Digital Network)

Nov. 9 (Sunday)
Final (Catamount Athletic Complex; Cullowhee, N.C.)
Match 9: Winner Match 7 vs. Winner Match 8, 1 p.m. (ESPN3)

All times Eastern.

-www.SoConSports.com-