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HIGH POINT, N.C. – The High Point University women's soccer team will play their first home conference game of the season on Saturday, Oct. 3, at 7 p.m., when it welcomes Winthrop to Vert Stadium. HPUs will try and pick up its second Big South win of 2015 with a victory over the Eagles.

The Panthers are coming off a 2-0 win against Gardner-Webb on Wednesday in Boiling Springs, N.C. High Point dominated the ball on the night, outshooting the Runnin' Bulldogs, 23-7, with a 13-2 advantage in shots on goal. Keely Brown stopped 10 shots for the Runnin' Bulldogs while sophomore Alex Persiani needed just two saves to record her fourth shutout of the season for HPU.

High Point grabbed the lead in the 40th minute when sophomore Paige Rombach scored to put the Panthers in front. HPU then doubled its lead just three minutes later as junior Meg Kowalski scored her first goal of 2015. Kowalski, who had already forced two saves in the game, received a square ball from freshman Savannah Stoughton and beat the keeper one-on-one with a shot to the right side. Redshirt-junior Kelsey Perrell earned her second assist of the night with a through ball to Stoughton to start the play.

Sophomores Becca Rolfe and Michele Micciche are tied for the team lead this season with six points and three goals through 11 games. Rombach is just behind the pair with two goals while seven other players have scored once. Sophomore Meredith Dunker is tops on the team with three of HPU's 13 assists on the season.

The Panther defense has allowed just six goals through 11 games while posting six shutouts as a team. Persiani is 3-2-3 in eight games with a 0.61 goals-against average, tops in the Big South.

Winthrop comes into Saturday's game with a 4-4-2 overall record and a 1-1-1 mark in the Big South. The Eagles are coming off a 0-0 draw at home against Longwood on Wednesday after starting conference play with a loss to UNC Asheville and a win over Gardner-Webb.

Taylor Coleman and Samantha Prytulak are tied for the team lead in points with five on two goals and one assist. JoJo Taylor and Megan David are tied with the pair for the team lead in goals. Seven different Winthrop players have notched an assist in 2015.

Caroline Duncan and Karly Gustafson have alternated games in goal this season with Duncan going 3-1-1 with a 0.96 goals-against average and Gustafson going 1-3-1 with a 1.10 goals-against average.

High Point holds a slim 7-5-4 lead in the all-time series against Winthrop. The Panthers earned two wins over WU last season, winning by a score of 1-0 in double-overtime at Winthrop on a goal by Jenny Marshall during the regular season and 1-0 at Vert Stadium in the first round of the Big South tournament behind a goal by Lindsay Elsen.

#GoHPU