Greenville, S.C. – Sisters Isabella and Alexis DeMarco each netted second-half goals to lift Western Carolina to a 2-0 victory over Furman in Southern Conference women's soccer action Thursday evening on Seagraves Field at Stone Stadium.
 
With the victory, the Catamounts (12-2-3, 7-0-1 SoCon) secured the SoCon regular season title and the No. 1 seed in next week's SoCon Women's Soccer Championship. Furman, 8-6-3 overall and 4-2-2 in league play, remained in a fourth-place tie with Mercer entering Sunday's regular season finale.
 
Western Carolina controlled the majority of possession in a scoreless first half before junior Isabella DeMarco scored in the 54^th minute. She dribbled across the top of the box before unleashing a left-footed strike the goalkeeper Reese Dejong touched off the cross bar but could not keep out of the net. Furman looked to push forward for an equalizer and the Catamounts took advantage in the 79^th minute when Isabella DeMarco played a pass through the back line to her sister Alexis to fire past DeJong at the 78:33 mark to double the margin.
 
"Congratulations to Western Carolina on the victory and the regular season championship," said Paladin head coach Andrew Burr. "I thought we played well at times, but we just weren't able to create enough chances tonight. We'll continue to prepare for the Southern Conference tournament and aim to play our best soccer here at the end of the season."
 
Western Carolina outshot the Paladins 17-5 and managed an 8-1 edge in shots on goal. The Paladins earned four corner kicks to six for the Catamounts. Leanne Trudel made one save to secure the shutout in goal for Western Carolina while DeJong posted six saves.
 
Furman concludes the regular season on Sunday afternoon when it travels to The Citadel for a 2 p.m. kickoff against the Bulldogs. The SoCon Women's Soccer Championship bracket will be revealed on Sunday night.