Panthers Open 2018 with Ohio, Morehead State

Friday, August 17

Pittsburgh, Pa.

7 PM

Pitt

Ohio

Buy Tickets

Panthers Open 2018 with Ohio, Morehead State

8/16/2018 5:39:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Randy Waldrum Kicks off New Era with Pitt Women’s Soccer Program

PITTSBURGH – The University of Pittsburgh women's soccer team will officially usher in the 2018 campaign this weekend, hosting a pair of games at Ambrose Urbanic Field.

Pitt will kick the season off Friday at 7 p.m., taking on Ohio in the first of a four-game homestand. The Panthers will return to action Sunday at 1 p.m. in an afternoon battle with Morehead State.

TICKETS

Fans can purchase single game tickets here for an advanced rate of $3.
Tickets at the gate are $5 and free for students.
Flex season ticket packages are also available here for $25.

PROMOTIONS

Friday vs. Ohio
- All fans receive a "Let's Go Pitt" navy & gold pom pom.
- Post-match autographs will be available on the field at the conclusion of the game.

Sunday vs. Morehead State
- The game will serve as the team's annual Jr. Panther's Day with free admission and a postgame clinic for kids 8th grade and under if they RSVP by Aug. 16.
- Kids in attendance will receive a mini Pitt crest soccer ball and Pitt women's soccer face tattoos.

HOW TO FOLLOW

The game can be seen live on the ACC Network Extra via WatchESPN and the WatchESPN app.
- Friday vs. Ohio
- Sunday vs. Morehead State
Live stats will be available via PittsburghPanthers.com.
Fans can follow along with live updates on Twitter @Pitt_WSOC.

THE MATCHUPS
Pitt (0-0-0, 0-0-0 ACC) opens the 2018 season with a pair of home outings against non-conference opponents., kicking off a four-game homestand The Panthers get things started in the 2018 campaign on Friday, hosting Ohio (0-0-0, 0-0-0 ACC) in a 7 p.m. tilt at Ambrose Urbanic Field. The Panthers will return to action Sunday for a 1 p.m. matchup with Morehead State (0-0-0, 0-0-0 ACC).

Pitt went 1-1 in the exhibition season, defeating Fairleigh Dickinson 2-1 on penalty kicks and falling to No. 23 Ohio State by a score of 2-0 on the road. In the opener against FDU, Ashley Moreira scored Pitt's lone goal in regulation, while all five Pitt strikers connected on penalty kicks.

All three Pitt keepers saw time net, with Amaia Pena earning the start, followed by Katherine Robinson and Claire Hinkle.

SCOUTING OHIO
The Bobcats went 7-10-3 in 2017 with a 4-5-2 conference record, falling in the Mid-American Conference Quarterfinals to No. 1 Kent State in penalty kicks.

The Bobcats are coming off a solid 6-0 exhibition win over Youngstown State with five of the six goals coming in the second half. Junior midfielder Alivia Milesky tallied a hat trick and registered two assists. Last season Milesky registered two goals on 16 shots on goal. She averaged an impressive 83.2 minutes per match and played in all 11 conference games. Freshman forward Abby Townsend also scored twice in exhibition, both coming in the second half off Milesky assists.

The Bobcats are projected to finish 8th in 2018 MAC Preseason Poll with 65 points, just above Western Michigan.

SCOUTING MOREHEAD STATE
In 2017, the Eagles went 3-13-1 with a 2-7-1 conference record and fell short of making the postseason for just the second time since winning the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament in 2013.

The Eagles split their exhibition games, beating Marshall 5-0 and losing to Louisville 4-0, but their young players stood out. Freshman forward Abby Vanhoeve recorded a pair of goals and an assist against Marshall, while sophomore goalie Eva Helgadottir led the Eagles to a shutout. Two notable returners for the Eagles are senior midfielder Cara Maher, who registered eight points last season, and junior forward Ashley Ritchie, who recorded two game-winning goals in 2017.

The Eagles will begin regular season play Friday, Aug. 17 at the Akron Zips before traveling to Pittsburgh.

THE SEIRES WITH OHIO
This will be the sixth all-time meeting between the two teams in a series dating back to the 2002 season. The Bobcats own a 4-1-0 all-time advantage and a mark of 2-1 in Pittsburgh. Ohio has won two straight with Pitt's last victory coming on Sept. 23, 2007 in a 1-0 decision at home.

THE SERIES WITH MOREHEAD STATE
This will be the first meeting between the Panthers and Eagles.

400 ON THE HORIZON
The next victory for head coach Randy Waldrum will be a milestone for the veteran leader, checking in at 400. Waldrum is one of the most prolific coaches in women's soccer history, having already solidified himself in the NCAA record books. Waldrum ranks as the ninth winningest coach in NCAA Division I women's history and owns the sixth-best win percentage of NCAA Division I women's head coaches (.772). Across all NCAA divisions, Waldrum owns the 17th best win mark.

THE WALDRUM ERA
The game will mark the beginning of the Randy Waldrum era as the first-year head coach and his staff begin their inaugural season with the Panthers. Waldrum becomes the fourth head coach in program history, bringing national experience to the Panthers' program.

Waldrum saw unprecedented success in his tenure at the helm of the perennial powerhouse Notre Dame women's program. In his 14 seasons, he led the Fighting Irish to two national championships, capturing the College Cup title in 2004 and 2010. His teams won eight Big East Tournament titles and appeared in eight NCAA Final Four games in that span. A two-time national coach of the year (2009 by Soccer America; 2010 by NSCAA), Waldrum was the first coach in NCAA history to lead a team to a national title in his/her first season with a program.

REDSHIRT RETURNERS
Two redshirt seniors, forward Taylor Pryce and midfielder Ashley Moreira, both whom have attended the U-20 Canadian National Team Camp, will lead the Panthers this season. Pryce started 17 of the 18 games in 2014 and 2015, scoring game-winning goals versus Louisville and Wake Forest. In 2016, she competed in two games, with one shot on goal, before missing the rest of season due to injury. Last season Pryce finished as the team's top point scorer, recording 11 points and starting in all 18 games.

Moreira also started 17 of the 18 games in 2014 and recorded 1,330 minutes of playing time, which was the fourth highest on the team. In 2015, she started all 18 games and recorded seven shots on goal, scoring her first career goal in an overtime game-winner at Colorado College. She missed the 2016 season due to the U-20 Canadian National Team Camp, but bounced back last season logging 1,541 total minutes and starting all 18 games.

GOALKEEPERS
Redshirt sophomore Amaia Pena will lead this young goalkeeper squad with a 2.55 goals against average. Last season she logged just over 529 minutes of field time and made a career-high 10 saves in a 3-2 loss vs. Boston College.

Freshmen Katherine Robinson and Claire Hinkle will also compete for time this season.

NEWBIES
The Panthers feature 14 newcomers on the roster, as 50 percent of the 2018 squad is new to the program. Pitt will debut 11 freshmen and three transfers. Of the 2017 roster with nine or more games of experience, only six return – Taylor Pryce, Vildan Kardesler, Alli Higgs, Ashley Moreira, Cheyenne Hudson and Aideen O'Donoghue.

MEET THE STAFF
Randy Waldrum is joined by three fresh faces on the 2018 coaching staff in Dustin Stein, Ben Waldrum and Riley Butler.

Stein joined the Panthers after nearly five years as the head coach at Eastfield College, where he was the winningest coach in program history. While at Eastfield, his teams tallied 14 or more wins in each of his last three seasons, and boasted a record of 42-12-3 in that stretch. Eastfield was amongst the top 10 NJCAA programs in each of the last three seasons as Stein was named the 2015 NJCAA Region 5 Division 3 Coach of the Year and the Metro Athletic Conference Coach of the Year.

The younger Waldrum had served as a member of the FC Dallas staff since October of 2012, in the youth development program. In April 2015 he was promoted to head coach of the FCD Women. The team competed to a record of 34-3-3 under Waldrum's tutelage, appearing in the WPSL Playoffs in 2016 and 2017 and capturing the 2016 WPSL Southwest Conference championships.

This will be the younger Waldrum's second stint in the college ranks, as he served as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator under his father at Notre Dame from 2003-08. With both Waldrums on staff, the Fighting Irish competed to a record of 111-13-5 and won the 2004 NCAA national title. He was a member of three NCAA College Cup appearances, won five Big East regular season titles and coached five All-Americans.

Butler came to the program after a four-year stint as the assistant men's coach at Radford University.

Butler helped lead the Highlanders to an overall record of 50-17-11, leading squads that were ranked in the top 25 in 2014, 2015 and 2016. The Big South Tournament champions in 2016 and regular season champions in 2014, 2015 and 2016 earned NCAA berths in both 2015 and 2016 under Butler's tutelage.

THE SCHEDULE
The Panthers will take part in 18 regular season games in 2018, including 11 home matches, in addition to a pair of exhibition contests. The regular season will see five meetings with teams ranked in the top 25 at the conclusion of the 2017 season, including three in the top 15 and two in the top 10. The Panthers are set to face off against 12 teams in the top 75 of last season's final RPI rankings.

SOCCER CREST UNVEILED
The crest features elements from the City of Pittsburgh, the city's iconic bridges and the three rivers surrounding the Steel City. The crest pays homage to the Cathedral of Learning arch-shape – a shield depicts a strong foundation, honing in on the arch shape only strengthens this idea.

The castle-like design at the top of the crest was inspired by the City of Pittsburgh and University of Pittsburgh seals, as both feature a similar castle. The iconic bridge is based on the Sister Bridges (Clemente, Warhol, Rachel Carson) as there are over 446 bridges throughout the Pittsburgh region, more than any other city in the world. The idea of bridges also ties in with Pitt Athletics Department strategy of the Gold Standard. The bottom portion of the crest features the three rivers (Allegheny, Monongahela, Ohio) that surround the Pittsburgh area.

UP NEXT
Pitt wraps up its homestand the following week, hosting Kent State in a regional showdown on Friday at 5 p.m. before returning to action Sunday in a 12 p.m. tilt with Jacksonville. Pitt will hit the road for the first time on the season, taking to the Lone Star State for meetings with TCU and North Texas.

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