HARROGATE, Tenn. – Carson-Newman (5-3, 2-2 SAC) goes head-to-head with Lincoln Memorial (4-4-1, 2-2-1 SAC) Wednesday at 3:30 p.m.
The Eagles are coming off a heavy 3-0 win against conference adversary Lenoir-Rhyne last Saturday. Kristian Speake (Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, United Kingdom) opened the scoring in the 17th minute when he picked off a poor clear by the Bears' goalkeeper.
"Like us, Lenoir-Rhyne has suffered a number of injuries," Carson-Newman head soccer coach Richard Moodie said. "When you've only got four scholarships, it shows when you start losing big players."
The second goal came five minutes into second half when Nico Noll (Esens, Niedersachsen, Germany) sent a cheeky back-heeled pass into the center of the 18-yard box for Ross Frame (Welshpool, Powys, United Kingdom) to hit first time.
After 74 minutes of action, Sindre Welo (Trondheim, Norway) delivered a perfect corner kick that Frame headed into the back of the net for a 3-0 lead and final score.
"Lenoir-Rhyne has a great squad," Moodie said. "They have a lot of wins on their schedule and have beat a lot of good teams. It just so happens we caught them at the right part of their season."
Lincoln Memorial lost 1-2 to L-R in overtime on Sept. 28. The Bears went up by a goal in the 85th minute. George Burne tied up the game 22 seconds later. He received a cross from Yuri Passos, took one touch into space and fired a shot into the goal.
Seven minutes into overtime, the Bears scored the golden goal to win the match.
The Railsplitters beat Brevard 1-0 last Saturday. Nathaniel Johnson got his first goal on the year in the 86th minute when he recovered a loose ball in the box and beat the keeper 1v1.
On Sept. 28, the Eagles put up a 7-1 win over Brevard, the biggest win in C-N history since a 6-0 victory over Newberry in 2004.
"We've capitalized on mistakes, something we couldn't do last year," Moodie said, "and we've had some brilliant goals."
Frame accumulated two goals and an assist. Speake and Welo each provided two more goals and Noll makes up the seventh point. Jake Fielder (Talbot, Tenn.) had two assists while Matheus Bachi (Caxias do Sul, Brazil), Rurik Pereira (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) and freshman Jalen Goddard (Chattanooga, Tenn.) each had one.
Carson-Newman outshot Brevard 25 to 4. Frame released 12 shots against the Tornadoes, six of which were on target. Welo took five shots and placed three on net. Speake had three shots, all of which were on goal.
Frame currently leads the Eagles in overall shots, shots on goal and points with 37, 21 and 19 respectively. He is first in the SAC in points and tied for third in goals, assists and shots. Frame is tied for 18th in the nation for points per game at 2.17.
Speake is tied for seventh in the SAC for overall points. He follows closely behind Frame in overall shots, shots on goal and points with 17, 12 and 12 respectively.
Last year, the Eagles beat LMU 2-1. In the ninth minute, Joao Dowsley (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) put up the first point for C-N with a finish off a corner kick taken by Welo. Three minutes later, Welo put up the Eagles' second goal by sending in a shot over the keeper from just outside the box.
After 85 minutes of play, Chris Nash put in the lone goal for the Railsplitters with a rocket finish off a rebounded shot off the crossbar.
Lincoln Memorial outshot Carson-Newman 21 to 15. Diego Deschamp led the Railsplitters in shots having taken six with three on frame. Welo had four shots for the Eagles, two of which were on net.
Rumwald Le Guevel (Vannes, France) had seven saves on the match.
"It's a big week for us on the schedule," Moodie said. "As the last game approaches, we have to be very careful in what we're doing. We don't get a chance to redo things."
The game can be followed live at www.cneagles.com/live.