BOONE, North Carolina – Senior forwards Maddie McCormick (Alexis I. DuPont H.S./Newark, Del.) and Katrina Guillou (Bishop Ireton H.S./Ft. Washington, Md.) each scored a goal, but UNCW (0-1-0) was unable to hold on as host Appalachian State (1-0-0) rallied to claim a 3-2 victory over the Seahawks in the season opener for both teams at the Appalachian Soccer Stadium on Friday afternoon.

"Give credit to Appalachian State for clawing its way back into the game," Coach Paul Cairney said. "Our team can learn from them and how they fought every inch of the way. Giving up a 2-0 lead with 15 minutes left is unacceptable. We will regroup and try to bounce back against a rested University of Virginia team on Sunday."

After McCormick gave UNCW a 1-0 lead in the 16th minute on an unassisted goal, Guillou added a penalty kick goal in the 72nd minute for a two-goal advantage.

But, the Mountaineers answered by scoring three times in the final 15:05 to earn the victory. Senior defender Merlin Beckwith (Rochester Adams H.S./Rochester Hills, Mich.) scored the game-winning goal in the 89th minute on a penalty kick goal.  

Senior goalkeeper Carolyn Huddy (Lake Norman H.S./Huntersville, N.C.) made three saves for the Seahawks, who outshot Appalachian State by a 13-10 margin.

#SeahawkStats: UNCW and Appalachian State met for the eighth time in the all-time series … The Mountaineers snapped a five-game winless streak in the series, but the Seahawks still hold a 5-2-1 advantage … McCormick's goal was the earliest scored by the Seahawks to start a season since 2007 when Erica Rodgers scored in the sixth minute of the season opener against Gardner-Webb … With her first half goal, McCormick moved into ninth place on the Seahawks' all-time scoring list with 46 points (18 goals, 10 assists) ... Guillou became the seventh player in UNCW women's soccer history to score 20 career goals after her penalty kick goal in the second half … It was also her fourth career penalty kick goal … The Seahawks are now 10-11-1 all-time in season openers.

Up Next for the Seahawks: UNCW visits second-ranked and reigning national finalist Virginia on Sunday, Aug. 23 at 2 p.m.

College Women's Soccer: Appalachian State 3, UNCW 2
UNCW  1-1 / 2
Appalachian St.  0-3 / 3

Goals: ASU – Emmily Cowie (74:55), Sam Childress (79:20), Merlin Beckwith (88:37, pk); UNCW – Maddie McCormick (15:18), Katrina Guillou (71:23, pk). Assists: ASU – Kate Ward, Merlin Beckwith; UNCW – n/a. Saves: ASU – Megan Roberson 1 (90:00, 2 goals allowed); UNCW – Carolyn Huddy 3 (90:00, 3 goals allowed). Shots: ASU – 10; UNCW – 13. Corner Kicks: ASU – 1; UNCW – 5. Attendance: 623.

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