Haley’s first career goal downs Thundering Herd

Over the weekend, the Pitt women’s soccer team won their season opener for the first time… Over the weekend, the Pitt women’s soccer team won their season opener for the first time under third-year head coach Sue-Moy Chin. The Panthers defeated Marshall 1-0 in Huntington, W. Va., Sunday.

“This was a really big win for our team,” Chin said. “This was a game we can definitely build off of as we gear up for conference play. We started really strong and saw a lot of scoring opportunities early in the game.”

The Thundering Herd could only hold off the Panthers’ intense offensive attack for 17 minutes and 43 seconds before Pitt finally scored.

The Panthers’ lone goal was the first career goal of redshirt freshman Meta Haley. Haley’s unassisted goal came on a strong move up the left side of the field before she crossed up two defenders and then fired a shot just inside the far right post.

Chin was extremely pleased with how her team maintained intensity while holding a one goal lead for most of the game. The Panthers (1-0 overall, 0-0 Big East) held their early lead by setting the tempo of the game and outshooting the Thundering Herd 8-3 in the first half.

“We wanted to keep pressuring them and just play our game,” Chin said. “The hardest part of maintaining a lead is to not let up. We did a good job of setting the tone.”

The Panthers’ pressurized attack continued into the second half as they outshot Marshall (0-1, 0-0) 6-2, increasing the margin from the first half to a final shot count of 14-5.

Panther senior goalkeeper Jamie Pelusi made three saves in the game for Pitt, while increasing her school-record career shutout total to 11.

“They really started pressing late in the game,” Chin said. “The last 10 minutes were extremely intense and proved to be a real tough test for our goalkeeper and backfield.”

The Panthers will look to build off their first game victory when they play host to West Virginia on Thursday at 7 p.m.

The Mountaineers are one of three Big East schools ranked in the Soccer American Women’s Preseason Top 25, where they are currently ranked No. 15. The only other ranked opponent on Pitt’s schedule is Connecticut, and the Panthers don’t play the Huskies until the last game of the regular season.

“Of course because of the rivalry, anytime we suit up against them it’s something a little more special, but this year, they are a very good team,” Chin said.