BOX SCORE

The High Point University women's soccer team fell to Charlotte, 4-2, in the team's non-conference finale on Friday night in Charlotte, N.C. Junior Danielle Schepler and sophomore Becca Hemby found the back of the net for HPU.

“We were working on some things tonight and are pleased with how our players responded,” head coach Marty Beall said. “Charlotte is a fantastic team that is well coached and has great players. We thought our possession was fantastic. We limited Charlotte's serious threats in the first half. They had two goals but for the most part we kept them at bay. The shot total doesn't really tell the true story of the game. Still we need to get back to practice and work on defending better.”

The loss was High Point's fifth straight and dropped the Panthers record to 2-7-1 on the season. Charlotte improved to 3-5-3 heading into the A10 season.

Charlotte controlled the play early in the game and in the 17th minute took a 1-0 lead on goal by Carrie Dail. Lacey McGowan found space down the left flank and sent a cross skidding along the ground in front of the HPU goal. The 49ers Oni Bernard made a run up the middle drawing senior Andrea Ritchie and freeing up Dail at the back post for the easy tap in.

Five minute later Charlotte doubled its lead with a goal by Amanda Jones in the 22nd minute. Jones found space just outside the box on the left side of the field and hit a low shot to the far post past a diving Ritchie.

HPU got a goal back in the 25th minute as Schepler connected on a set piece for her first score of the season. Sophomore Kelli Joline drew a foul 25-yds from net and Schepler connected with a bending kick off a touch by sophomore Brooke Lisson.

Charlotte again had the better of play in the beginning of the second half and in the 54th minute Jonna Handra scored to push the Charlotte lead to 3-1. Hondra scored from 10-yds out with a low shot to the left post after Dail laid the ball off to her in the box.

The lead increased to 4-1 just two minutes later when Macky Boyce hit a shot from 25-yards out which caromed off the crossbar and into the net.

High Point pulled to within two in the 59th minute on a header goal from Hemby. HPU earned a free kick just past the halfline and senior Danniel Rosado boomed a free kick into the box. Hemby managed to out jump her marker and flicked the ball into the net from 10-yards out. The goal moved Hemby into a tie for the team lead with three goals on the season.

“One of the things we work on a lot is set pieces,” Beall said. “We were very pleased to get two fantastic goals off well run set pieces tonight and feel that it will make us more dangerous moving forward.”

High Point begins conference play on Thursday, Sept. 29, when the team will welcome Charleston Southern to Vert Stadium. The Lady Buccaneers and Panthers were both Co-Regular Season champions of the Big South last season. The two teams split their two meetings last season with CSU winning, 3-2, in overtime at home and High Point pulling out the 1-0 win in the Big South Quarterfinals.