The Cougars have struggled on the road this season (1-5-0), with their only win com- ing on Sept. 14 against HBU. | Aaron Cisneros/The Daily Cougar
The Cougars have an opportunity to improve their postseason outlook this weekend with away matches against Marshall and East Carolina.
UH (5-10-1, 2-5-1 Conference USA) is currently tied with UAB (6-8-1, 2-4-1) for the final spot in the C-USA Tournament in points, but the Cougars are a half-game back in the loss column.
Head coach Susan Bush said that she expects it to be a tough weekend with teams vying for postseason berths.
“We know it’s going to be an absolute battle,” Bush said. “As long as we bring the effort, we can compete with anybody.”
The Cougars’ competition — the Pirates (7-6-1, 2-5-0) and the Thundering Herd (3-9-3, 1-5-2) — won’t be as big of a hurdle as playing away from Robertson Stadium.
The Cougars have recorded only one road victory this season, a 1-0 defeat of HBU on Sept 14.
Freshman midfielder Sharis Lachappelle had strong showings in UH’s previous two matches against Southern Miss. and UCF. She said that the team’s work ethic will play a big part in their success over the final stretch of the season.
“We’re going to play with a lot of heart and work,” Lachappelle said.
“I expect good things.”
East Carolina will prove to be a much more difficult opponent for the Cougars than their record might suggest. The Pirates (7-6-1, 2-5-0 C-USA) are coming off a 1-0 overtime victory against SMU, who are ranked second in the C-USA standings. Sitting right behind UH at 10th in the conference, the Pirates will be looking to jump past the Cougars in the standings with a victory at home.
This weekend’s road trip will be the Cougars’ final trek of the regular season before capping it with a game against cross-town rival Rice on October 28th at Robertson Stadium.
