VIDEO: Stephen Lyons Interview
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – After a two-week break from action, Carson-Newman gets back to work Thursday with a road trip to Johnson City, Tenn. to take on Lincoln Memorial at 7 p.m.
This will be the first game that Carson-Newman (2-1-1, 1-1 South Atlantic Conference) has played since defeating Mars Hill on March 4, 3-0. The Eagles were originally slated to visit Tusculum last Thursday until the Pioneers do to put team events on pause while they entered SAC COVID-19 management protocols.
C-N and Lincoln Memorial (1-1, 1-1 SAC) were supposed to play this match at the LMU Soccer Complex, but impending soaking weather in the region forced the contest to be moved to Science Hill High School.
At the midway point of the abbreviated season, the Eagles are leading the conference with 64 shot attempts and 33 corner kicks while tying for the most assists at six. Twelve different Eagles have accounted for at least two shot opportunities with three combining for 35. Harry Whitehead (Oxford, England) leads the club and the entire conference with 13 shots while Thaylan Silva (São Paulo, Brazil) and Theo Hardenby Öhrwall (Stockholm, Sweden) account for 12 and 10 respectively.
The team's 27 shots on goal through the first four games are also the most in the league. It has forced its opponents to make 20 saves with seven goals allowed.
"I think in we've been playing some really good football all the way up to the final third and then we just need to start being a little more clinical around the goal," Carson-Newman coach Stephen Lyons said. "I think once we start getting that fire in, again, we can probably go as far as we want really."
After winning its first SAC game of the season, C-N is looking for its first pair of back-to-back conference wins since October 2019 when it won four-straight.
This is the third road test the Eagles have faced this season but their first against a conference opponent. They are 1-0-1 away from McCown Field this year, 136-108-24 overall since 1990. When being hosted by league members, they have gone 65-39-14. The Eagles have gone 879 days without a conference road loss, going 3-0-3 since a 2-0 loss at Wingate on Oct. 20, 2018.
This meeting marks the 35th between C-N and Lincoln Memorial in a series that dates back to 1989. The match is still considered a home game for LMU despite the change of venue. When being hosted by Lincoln Memorial, Carson-Newman holds a 7-2-2 advantage, winning both of the previous meetings with a 5-3 advantage.
The last time C-N visited LMU was on Sept. 19, 2018. The Eagles took a 2-0 lead before the break thanks to a penalty kick from Ashley Kelynack and a Samuel Jenkins header off a corner. The Railsplitters responded in the second half with a pair of goals, but their threat did not last long with Tobias Solem Karlsen netted the dagger in the 60th minute. The emotional game came with 13 bookings total with the three red cards all being shown to the 'Splitters, allowing C-N to win with a two-man advantage.
Each of the last three face-offs between the two sides have been decided by one goal. The latest was a 1-0 loss at McCown Field on February 25 to open both C-N's home and league schedules. C-N sent out 18 shot attempts and held Lincoln Memorial to just a single look. That shot was the difference-maker, also being the only LMU shot to land on frame with F.D. De Santiago netting both the only goal of the game and the only goal of the season for Robert Spain's crew. The lone shot marks the fewest shots C-N has allowed in a game since Mars Hill sent off a trio on Oct. 16, 2019.
"I think we just need to continue to do the things we have been and, like we say, putting our chances away," Lyons said. "I think last time we out-shot them 18-1. It's important we're solid defensively and then when we get the opportunities, the boys will put them in."
Since their last meeting, LMU has played just one other match, losing to Mars Hill, 3-0. Like C-N, LMU's March 3 match with Tusculum was shuffled due to COVID management.
Shanden Vergara and Will Arrowood lead the 'Splitters with two shot attempts on the year. Vergara, De Santiago and Pedro da Silva all lead the group with a single shot on goal.
Robin Hermann has been the lone man in front of the net through both of the first games of the season. He has made 12 saves on the season, allowing three goals in 32 shots faced. His one shutout this season helped him to receive SAC Defensive Player of the Week honors for the week of March 3.
As a team, LMU is tied for eighth in the league with one goal and have taken the fewest shot attempts at six. It has been booked with five yellow cards, tying for the seventh-most in the conference.
In their matches against C-N and Mars Hill, the Railsplitters have faced stout offensive showings. They have allowed 32 shots with 15 on frame with opponents firing a .094 shooting clip. On the defensive side, their opposition has needed just two saves on the one goal allowed.
Live stats from Science Hill High School will be provided by the staff at Lincoln Memorial with real-time updates coming from @CNathletics on Twitter.
