The Bulldogs will play their first home match of the 2009 season tonight, when they face off against area rival Western Carolina at the Justice Center. The Catamounts hold a 23-17 all-time advantage in matchups against the Bulldogs, but Asheville came out on top last season with a victory in four sets in Cullowhee.
Western Carolina is a much improved team from last season, when they posted a 6-26 record (3-15 conference) for a last-place finish in the Southern Conference North Division. This can be attributed in part to Western’s grueling non-conference schedule - the Catamounts still turned in victories over Elon and the Citadel, both of which provided a real challenge for the Bulldogs in last weekend’s NCCU Invitational Tournament. The year is off to an equally demanding start for Western, which opened its season over the weekend at the Kentucky Invitational Tournament. There the Catamounts faced 21st-ranked Kentucky, reigning Sun-Belt champion Florida International, and Northwestern. Western lost all three matches in straight sets, but the early challenge has no doubt aided their preparation for tonight’s battle. The Catamounts return every starter from last season, and are led by senior setter Katie Hennessey, who was named to the Kentucky Invitational All-Tournament Team for her efforts last weekend. Other standouts include senior libero Liz Rondone, whose 439 digs led the team last year, senior middle blocker Amanda Kerr, and sophomore middle blocker Carrie Minogue, who led the Catamounts with 252 kills.
Asheville returns most of the key contributors from last year’s victory over Western. Kelsey Benorden (18 kills, 18 digs) and Lauren Ficker (16 kills, 8 digs) led the attack, with Raquel Miotto contributing 17 digs, and a 25 set, 10 dig performance from Kaitlyn McDaniel. Tonight, the Bulldogs will have the added benefit of freshmen Holly Shelton and Chelsie Kenley, who performed well in the NCCU tournament. The team will hope to carry some momentum into this match from Saturday night’s five set, come-from-behind victory over the Citadel. Asheville and Western know each other well, so we can expect a highly competitive match. Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for children. UNC Asheville students can attend at no charge. I will also be covering the game with live updates on the athletic department’s Twitter page, www.twitter.com/ashevilledogs
Prediction: UNC Asheville 3, Western Carolina 1
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Men's Soccer Preview: North Carolina
The Bulldogs face what will likely be the season’s stiffest challenge tonight as they travel to Chapel Hill to face the North Carolina Tar Heels at Fetzer Field. The Tar Heels enter the regular season ranked number one in the nation. Last year, UNC made it all the way to the national championship game, before falling 1-0 to Maryland. This season, they look prepared to pick up right where they left off. Led by three goals from pre-season All-American midfielder Stephen McCarthy, the Tar Heels dispatched of Georgetown, VCU, and Old Dominion in their pre-season friendlies.
One year ago, the Bulldogs took on UNC in Chapel Hill and played brilliantly in a 2-1 loss. Asheville played most of the game short-handed after a red card in the first half, but still played the Tar Heels evenly until Alex Dixon broke the tie in the 68th minute. Although many of the Bulldogs’ leaders from last season have now graduated, the strong sophomore class played a critical role in last year’s performance and will look to repeat the effort this time around. Goalkeeper Lassi Hurskainen recorded four saves in the match last year, and can expect to be tested again tonight. Midfielder Connor Holzinger assisted the Bulldogs’ only goal, and will need to lead the charge on offense, along with standouts Bryan George and Colton Paschall. The Bulldogs are winless in nine total contests against the Tar Heels.
The match can be followed via GameTracker on the Tar Heel Blue athletics website. http://tiny.cc/uncmatch
Go Bulldogs!!
One year ago, the Bulldogs took on UNC in Chapel Hill and played brilliantly in a 2-1 loss. Asheville played most of the game short-handed after a red card in the first half, but still played the Tar Heels evenly until Alex Dixon broke the tie in the 68th minute. Although many of the Bulldogs’ leaders from last season have now graduated, the strong sophomore class played a critical role in last year’s performance and will look to repeat the effort this time around. Goalkeeper Lassi Hurskainen recorded four saves in the match last year, and can expect to be tested again tonight. Midfielder Connor Holzinger assisted the Bulldogs’ only goal, and will need to lead the charge on offense, along with standouts Bryan George and Colton Paschall. The Bulldogs are winless in nine total contests against the Tar Heels.
The match can be followed via GameTracker on the Tar Heel Blue athletics website. http://tiny.cc/uncmatch
Go Bulldogs!!
Bulldogs Weekend Recap
It was a big weekend for UNC Asheville athletics, with volleyball and women’s soccer opening regular season play. The volleyball schedule began with a bang, with the Bulldogs playing four matches over the course of two days at the RTP Hilton/NCCU Tournament in Durham. Play began Saturday with a dissapointing 3-1 loss to UNC Wilmington, despite strong performances from junior Kelsey Benorden (22 kills, 14 digs, .439 attack percentage), senior Raquel Miotto (24 digs), and freshman Holly Shelton (10 kills, .571 percentage). The Bulldogs rallied on Saturday evening, however, to defeat South Carolina State in straight games. The match turned out to be a momentous occasion for Miotto, who reached 2,000 career digs, becoming only the 2nd player in UNC Asheville and Big South history to pass this milestone. Offensively, the Bulldogs were driven by Benorden (9 kills) and senior Lauren Ficker (8 kills, .462). Junior Rachel Guinane also performed well, with 18 sets in the match.
On Saturday, Asheville fell in four sets to an Elon team that posted a perfect record over the weekend and looked to be the strongest at the tournament. The Bulldogs kept it close, taking the early lead in each set, but tournament MVP Traci Stewart and the Phoenix proved overpowering. Ficker was the leading attacker with 15 kills, Miotto recorded 17 digs, and Guinane had 31 sets to her credit. Later in the evening, the Bulldogs closed out the tournament on a high note by coming from behind to defeat the Citadel in five sets. Asheville was paced again by Benorden, who recorded her second double-double of the tournament with 20 kills and 14 digs, and by Miotto (18 digs) and Guinane (47 sets). The victory was a big confidence booster for the Bulldogs, and gives the team some much needed momentum headed into Wednesday night’s showdown with Western Carolina (7pm at the Justice Center). Two Bulldog players were recognized for their performances over the weekend. Kelsey Benorden was named to the All-Tournament team on Saturday, after racking up 64 kills over the four matches. This was followed by the announcement on Sunday that Holly Shelton has been named the Big South Volleyball Freshman of the Week. Shelton posted 31 kills and a .389 percentage for the tournament. The Bulldogs’ 2-2 record puts them in a three-way tie for second place in the Big South. Stay tuned for a preview of their home opener on the Bulldog Blog tomorrow.
Sunday’s match against Appalachian State turned out to be the season opener for women’s soccer, after inclement weather cost the Bulldogs the opportunity to challenge Clemson on Friday. Asheville lost the match 1-0, but head coach Michele Cornish was pleased with much of what she saw. The Bulldogs played a strong, statistically even match against a tough opponent, on the road. There were a few key scoring opportunities in the game, including two shots on goal by senior attacker McKenna Stockhausen, but the Bulldogs could not manage to convert. The Mountaineers’ Sydney Hill recorded the lone goal, beating Asheville keeper Veronica Lazar in the 14th minute. Lazar split netminding duties with freshman Megan Dent, who took over in the second half. Each recorded one save in the match. The Bulldogs will face another tough away game against a Southern Conference foe on Thursday, when they travel to Spartanburg to face Wofford at 6pm. The match can be viewed online through the Wofford athletics website at http://tiny.cc/wofford
On Saturday, Asheville fell in four sets to an Elon team that posted a perfect record over the weekend and looked to be the strongest at the tournament. The Bulldogs kept it close, taking the early lead in each set, but tournament MVP Traci Stewart and the Phoenix proved overpowering. Ficker was the leading attacker with 15 kills, Miotto recorded 17 digs, and Guinane had 31 sets to her credit. Later in the evening, the Bulldogs closed out the tournament on a high note by coming from behind to defeat the Citadel in five sets. Asheville was paced again by Benorden, who recorded her second double-double of the tournament with 20 kills and 14 digs, and by Miotto (18 digs) and Guinane (47 sets). The victory was a big confidence booster for the Bulldogs, and gives the team some much needed momentum headed into Wednesday night’s showdown with Western Carolina (7pm at the Justice Center). Two Bulldog players were recognized for their performances over the weekend. Kelsey Benorden was named to the All-Tournament team on Saturday, after racking up 64 kills over the four matches. This was followed by the announcement on Sunday that Holly Shelton has been named the Big South Volleyball Freshman of the Week. Shelton posted 31 kills and a .389 percentage for the tournament. The Bulldogs’ 2-2 record puts them in a three-way tie for second place in the Big South. Stay tuned for a preview of their home opener on the Bulldog Blog tomorrow.
Sunday’s match against Appalachian State turned out to be the season opener for women’s soccer, after inclement weather cost the Bulldogs the opportunity to challenge Clemson on Friday. Asheville lost the match 1-0, but head coach Michele Cornish was pleased with much of what she saw. The Bulldogs played a strong, statistically even match against a tough opponent, on the road. There were a few key scoring opportunities in the game, including two shots on goal by senior attacker McKenna Stockhausen, but the Bulldogs could not manage to convert. The Mountaineers’ Sydney Hill recorded the lone goal, beating Asheville keeper Veronica Lazar in the 14th minute. Lazar split netminding duties with freshman Megan Dent, who took over in the second half. Each recorded one save in the match. The Bulldogs will face another tough away game against a Southern Conference foe on Thursday, when they travel to Spartanburg to face Wofford at 6pm. The match can be viewed online through the Wofford athletics website at http://tiny.cc/wofford
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