CULLOWHEE, N.C. – The East Carolina soccer team battled to a 1-1 draw with Western Carolina on Sunday afternoon. Emma Sheehan scored the lone goal in the game for the Pirates.
After dominating the possession and chances for much of the first half, the Pirates finally broke through in the 36th minute when Catherine Holbrook launched a long throw from the left side of the pitch and into the box. The throw found the head of Jazmin Ferguson who knocked the ball into the air and eventually to the foot of Sheehan who absolutely blasted the ball back where it came from and into the right side of the net. The goal was the first of Sheehan’s ECU career.
The Pirates kept pushing and earned a penalty kick in the 39th minute. Abby Sowa took the shot from the spot, but it was punched away by the Catamounts keeper to keep the score at 1-0.
Where the first half was all ECU, the second half was all Western Carolina and they started by forcing a leaping Maeve English save in the 52nd minute to stop a strong shot by Naya Marcil. The Catamounts would keep pushing and in the 69th minute Marcil’s touch in the box wound up on the foot of Milla Syska who gave English no chance.
Key Stats
- Emma Sheehan finally got her first goal in Purple and Gold, but interestingly not her first goal as a “Pirate” after scoring two goals as a Seton Hall Pirate.
- In a tale of two halves, the game was even on the final score sheet with a 12-10 margin on shots and 6-5 shots on goal edge favoring WCU.
- Six Pirates went the full 90: English, Sowa, Ferguson, Lucy Fazackerley, Sydney Schnell and Sierra Lowery.
Up Next
The Pirates finally return home as they start American Athletic Conference play at 7 p.m. on Thursday when they host Florida Atlantic. The match is free for fans and will be available for streaming on ESPN+.
