BUIES CREEK, N.C. – The Campbell University (2-2-0) women's soccer team dropped their first home game of the season, a 1-0 loss to ECU (4-0-0) on Thursday evening at the Eakes Athletics Complex.  

"I was really proud of our players tonight," said head coach Samar Azem. "We did a lot of things well, and we continue to show a high level of organization. The loss is gut-wrenching because we had the game in our hands at one point."

Courtney Cash scored the game-winning goal for the Pirates in the 69th minute of play in the Creek.

Erin Scott had a spectacular game between the posts for the Fighting Camels, corralling five saves over the course of the match. The Sachse, Texas, native also came off her line on numerous occasions to fend off dangerous scoring opportunities.

Campbell played strong offensively in the opening minutes, firing away four shots and earning four corner kicks. Anna Brantley got her head on the ball off a corner kick by Shannon Wratchford in the third minute of play, but it went just high.

The Camels' best scoring opportunity came in the 21st minute, as Rosie O'Neal and Alexa Genas both registered shots.

O'Neal's shot got past the goalkeeper, but ECU's Marianna Shurina saved the shot off the line. Genas received the rebounded shot and fired off another shot, but it was blocked by a Pirate defender.

Following the offensive flurry by the Camels, ECU held more of the possession through the final 25 minutes of the half. The Pirates recorded four shots and earned two corner kicks in the latter part of the half.

ECU came out of the half with a lot of energy, recording two shots in the first 20 minutes of action. The Pirates got on the board in the 69th minute, as Courtney Cash earned her first goal of the season.

Cash fired the shot off from 10 yards out following a give-and-go between Cashlin Copley, Erin Mikalsen and Cash. 

"Credit to ECU's target and attacking mid. They are a handful to deal with and those two players were able to unbalance us really well on a counter," said Azem.

CU played aggressively in the attacking third during the final twenty minutes of play, but was unable to even the score. Amanda Crecelius registered her first shot of the season from the top of the box, but the ECU goalkeeper saved it.

"We can't fail to acknowledge the positive things we did. We are sharpening and refining various areas of our game. We weren't sharp enough in the final third or in possession. We were missing some of our creativity and were a bit too predictable in the final third," said Azem.

Campbell will travel to Orangeburg, S.C., for a matchup versus South Carolina State on Saturday at 7 p.m. For the most up-to-date information, make sure to follow @GoCamelsWSOC on Twitter.