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Slaton, West Virginia look to run past East Carolina

Sep 19, 2006 - 8:48 PM No. 4 West Virginia (3-0) at East Carolina (1-2), 4:30 pm EDT

GREENVILLE, North Carolina (Ticker) - After three emphatic home wins, Steve Slaton and fourth-ranked West Virginia take to the road Saturday when they visit East Carolina in a regional matchup.

Slaton rushed for 195 yards and two touchdowns in West Virginia's 45-24 thumping of Maryland on September 14. He would have had a third first-quarter TD but fumbled into the end zone, where tight end Brad Palmer recovered for a score.

Slaton leads the Big East Conference in rushing and is third nationally with an average of 167.67 yards - 8.1 per carry - for the Mountaineers (3-0), who lead the country in average rushing yards (348.67).

"He understands what his role is in our offense," Mountaineers coach Rich Rodriguez said. "When he makes big plays like he did in the last ballgame and like he did in several ballgames, it certainly gives a boost to all the guys on our team."

After opening with losses at Navy and UAB, East Carolina (1-2) evened its Conference USA record at 1-1 with a 35-20 comeback win at home over Memphis last weekend.

The Pirates trailed, 20-7, at the break but scored one touchdown in the third quarter and three in the fourth for their first victory of the season.

East Carolina, which forced six turnovers, took the lead for good, 21-20, when defensive end Zach Slate scored on a seven-yard interception return early in the final period.

East Carolina narrowly lost at West Virginia last year, 20-15. In the last meeting here in 2003, the Mountaineers stormed to a 48-7 victory.