HIGH POINT, N.C.— High Point University women's soccer comes home for its final two contests of the season, starting with a 7 p.m. kickoff against Gardner-Webb this Wednesday at Vert Stadium. The Panthers will be watching the Big South scoreboard closely this weekend, as a victory against the Bulldogs, accompanied with losses from Presbyterian and UNC Asheville, would clinch HPU's 20th straight conference tournament appearance. 

Panthers Clinch The Postseason:
A) With a win vs Gardner-Webb AND a Presbyterian loss to Radford AND a UNCA loss at USC Upstate
B) With a win vs Gardner-Webb AND a Presbyterian draw with Radford AND a UNCA loss at USC Upstate

The Panthers come back home after taking a 2-1 loss at Winthrop this past weekend. The score went final after the Eagles were granted a penalty less than two minutes into the first overtime period, converting on an attempt that would put HPU on a two-game losing streak. Before their recent pair of losses, the Panthers were fresh off back-to-back home victories over visiting Presbyterian and UNC Asheville. High Point has won its last three meetings at Vert Stadium, while outscoring teams 11-2 and going a perfect 3-0-0 against Big South opponents at home this season. 

Standing second in the current conference table, Gardner-Webb will be looking to extend its win streak to four straight, suffering just a single loss in Big South-play, back in September. The Bulldogs have had a number of common opponents with the Panthers on this year's schedule, drawing with a Marshall side that HPU lost 1-0 to, but falling to an App State squad the Panthers blew out 4-0. While GWU has an impressive 7-1-2 record when playing at home in Boiling Springs, the Bulldogs have had recognizable difficulty on the road, collecting a 1-3-1 record when playing the visitor. 

High Point (5-8-3, 3-3-2) vs Gardner-Webb (8-4-3, 5-1-1)
When: Wednesday, October 16, at 7:00 p.m.
Where: High Point, N.C. | Vert Stadium
All-Time Series: High Point leads 10-2-3
Last Meeting: Win 1-0 (OT), on October 11, 2017 in Boiling Springs, N.C.
Watch: ESPN+
Live Stats: SideArm

On the Panthers
• Freshman forward Skyler Prillaman scored her seventh goal of the season at Winthrop, hitting the back of the net in four of her last five appearances
• Prillaman is currently tied with Gardner-Webb's Maddie Turlington for most points scored by a Big South freshman this season (17)
• Freshman Brooke Parsons earned an assist on Prillaman's goal against the Eagles, she's collected six points over eight matches, since earning the regular starting job back at the start of September. Her four assists in Big South-play are tied for a league-high
• Senior goalkeeper Emily Lyon currently leads the Big South with a 0.84 goals against average, while her .781 save percentage is fifth in the conference
• Junior defenders Allie Reagan and Brie Deel currently lead the Panthers with 1,250 and 1,201 minutes played respectively, they've helped lead HPU to five shutouts and a 1.38 goals against average in 2018
• High Point returns home for their final two matches of the regular season, where the program is 4-1-1 with a +12 goal differential on the year
 
On the Bulldogs
• In addition to being one of the highest scoring freshman in the Big South, midfielder Maddie Turlington's seven assists on the year sit tied at 26th in Division I women's soccer
• It's been near impossible to score on the Bulldogs in conference-play this season, with GWU sporting a Big South best 0.83 GAA in conference play
• Keely Brown has posted a 0.86 goals against average and a .824 save percentage in conference-play, ranking second and third respectively in those categories
 
Series Notes:
• HPU is 10-2-3 against the Bulldogs all-time, winning the pair's last matchup 1-0 in overtime
• The Panthers are on a three-game winning streak against GWU, posting a 6-0-2 record against the Bulldogs since 2009
• Gardner-Webb has not scored on HPU in the pair's last five meetings, with its most recent goal against the Panthers coming in a 2-1 overtime loss back in 2012
 
Coming Up Next:
• After its previously scheduled match with Longwood was washed out, the Panthers prepare to close out the regular season at home against the visiting Lancers in a makeup game next Tuesday at 7 p.m.
• HPU is 12-3-3 against Longwood all-time, twice beating the Lancers 1-0 in 2017

#GoHPU