Staying Connected
Live stats are available for both games of the Hilton Garden Inn Hokie Invitational and can be accessed by clicking here or on the link at the top of the page. Fans can also keep up with updates for all 19 of UNCW's sports by checking out the department's Facebook (UNCWsports) and Twitter (@UNCWAthletics) accounts.

Seahawk Notes
UNCW begins its 19th season of competition and 17th campaign under the guidance of veteran coach Paul Cairney this weekend at the Hilton Garden Inn Hokie Invitational in Blacksburg, Va. ... The Seahawks will face the host Hokies on Friday in a 7:30 p.m. contest before squaring off against the Demon Deacons Sunday at Noon ... The Hilton Garden Inn Hokie Invitational marks the start of a three-game stretch that will see the UNCW take on three nationally-ranked opponents from the Atlantic Coast Conference on the road ... Cairney welcomes back 16 letterwinners and seven starters from last season's squad, led by senior Stephanie Rose, who paced the squad in scoring last season with 10 points (5 G) on her way to earning Third-Team All-CAA honors ... Rose was named to the Colonial Athletic Association's Preseason Women's Soccer Team on Wednesday ... UNCW also welcomes 19 newcomers, including sophomore transfers Stephanie Bronson and Taber Lewis, who spent their freshman seasons at NC State and High Point, respectively ... UNCW holds an all-time record of 10-7-1 in season openers ... The Seahawks posted a 2-0 victory at Francis Marion in its 2011 season debut on Aug. 19.

Last Time Out
UNCW used a pair of goals from senior Stephanie Rose to rally from a 1-0 deficit and defeat visiting UNC Chapel Hill, 2-1, in a collegiate women's soccer exhibition contest at the UNCW Soccer Stadium on Aug. 8 ... Playing three 30-minute periods, the Seahawks trailed 1-0 until the final minute of the second session when Rose teamed up with sophomore transfer Stephanie Bronson for the equalizer ... Rose then broke the deadlock in the 83rd minute when she converted a penalty kick opportunity created when she was taken down by a Tar Heel defender inside the top of the box ... Senior keeper Caitlin Hunter played all 90 minutes in goal for the Seahawks and finished with four saves.

Scouting Virginia Tech
Hilton Garden Inn Hokie Invitational host Virginia Tech enters the 2012 season with eight starters back from the 2011 squad that went 14-8-1 and advanced all the way to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament ... The Hokies, tabbed 22nd in the NSCAA Preseason Poll, will be led offensively by senior Kelly Conheeney, who a Second-Team All-ACC selection after recording a team-high 30 points (12 G, 6 A) last season ... Junior keeper Dayle Colpitts, who set the school record with seven shutouts in 2011, will miss the Hilton Garden Inn Hokie Invitational as she represents Canada in the FIFA U-20 World Cup, which begins next week in Japan ... Head Coach Charles Adair also welcomes seven freshmen, including the 2011 NSCAA High School National Player-of-the-Year, Ashley Meier, into the fold for the 2012 season.

Scouting Wake Forest
Ranked No. 3 in the NSCAA Preseason Poll, Wake Forest welcomes back 10 starters from last year's squad that advanced to the College Cup for the first time in school history ... Juniors Aubrey Bledsoe and Katie Stengel, who were both named to the Hermann Trophy Watch List last week, return to anchor coach Tony Da Luz's lineup ... Bledsoe earned All-America honors in 2011 after posting a school-record 14 shutouts to earn First-Team All-ACC honors ... Stengel, meanwhile, led the ACC in scoring with 46 points (19 G, 8 A) on her way to being named ACC Offensive Player-of-the-Year ... Stengel will not be with the team for the Hilton Garden Inn Hokie Invitational as the two-time All-American will represent the United States in the FIFA U-20 World Cup, which opens next week in Japan.

Series Notes
Friday's contest marks the first meeting between UNCW and Virginia Tech ... Sunday's matchup will serve as the seventh contest between UNCW and Wake Forest ... The Demon Deacons have won all six previous meetings, including a 5-0 triumph over the Seahawks in the 2010 season opener on Aug. 20, 2010 at the UNCW Soccer Stadium.

Record Watch
Senior Stephanie Rose begins her senior season tied for fifth in program history with 20 goals ... She needs just one more strike to break a tie with former standout Jenny Cauble (2004-07) ... Rose also sits in seventh place on the squad's career scoring chart with 48 points ... She is just six points away from tying three players - Cauble, Michelle Doherty (1998-2000) and Katy Shearon (1995-98) - for fourth place on the all-time list (54) ... Senior keeper Caitlin Hunter begins her final season in the Port City in second place in wins (17), third in saves (223), fifth in save percentage (.785) and sixth in goals against average (1.46) ... She needs one more victory to move past Carla Linebarger (1996-99) into sole possession of second place on the school's career victories list.

Around The Colonial Athletic Association
All 11 teams in the Colonial Athletic Association will be in action during the opening weekend with eight teams beginning the regular season on Friday and the other three teams kicking off the campaign on Sunday ... UNCW is one of two league teams facing a ranked opponent this weekend as William & Mary will host No. 2 Duke at home on Friday ... Defending league champion William & Mary was selected to repeat in the league's preseason coaches' poll released last week ... The Tribe 10 first-place votes to take the top spot while James Madison, Hofstra and Northeastern were tabbed to finished second, third and fourth, respectively ... The Tribe's Mallory Schaffer, named to the Hermann Trophy Watch List last week, was tabbed the CAA's Preseason Player-of-the-Year on Wednesday ... Schaffer was the CAA Player-of-the-Year and a First-Team All-America selection in 2011 after pacing W&M with 40 points (17 G, 6 A).

Up Next
UNCW completes its season-opening road swing Aug. 26 when it faces No. 7 Virginia in Charlottesville, Va. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m.