Pirates Fall to Liberty in Season Opener, 3-1

GREENVILLE, N.C. – The East Carolina Pirates dropped their 2025 common season opener to the Liberty Flames, 3-1, Thursday afternoon at Bill Clark Homes Field Johnson Stadium.

Liberty struck shortly, capitalizing on an ECU miscue simply 40 seconds in. Ivy Gardner buried the opener off a pinpoint right-footed cross from Halle Engle to provide the Flames early momentum.

The guests doubled their lead with quarter-hour left within the first half when Lauren Flax lofted a curling shot into the top-right nook after a cross from the left discovered her simply outdoors the field.

Liberty added a 3rd within the 72nd minute when Olivia Dietrich punched away a shot from the precise aspect, just for Briana Myers to pounce on the rebound and slot it house.

The Pirates discovered a late spark after Maddie Milliron weaved into the field and was introduced down, incomes a penalty. Isabella Gutiérrez stepped up and calmly fired down the middle to report ECU’s first objective of the season.

In a shiny spot for the Pirates, the match marked the return of Molly Thomas after 679 days and Holly Schlagel after 1,057 days away from motion as a result of varied accidents.

Up Next: The Pirates stay at Johnson Stadium to host NC State on Sunday night time. Kickoff is about for 7:00 p.m. The sport is free to take care of followers. For these which are unable the sport will likely be streamed on ESPN+.