NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Julianne Herrity (Donegal, Ireland) scored less than one minute into the new season and Carson-Newman tacked on two second half scores on their way to a 3-1 victory over the Trevecca Nazarene Trojans at Trojan Soccer Complex on Thursday evening.
This is the second consecutive season Carson-Newman has opened with a win over the Trojans. Last year, their triumph came at McCown Field. This is the first time they've beaten Trevecca Nazarene on the road.
"It was a great start to the season, scoring in 37 seconds," Head Coach Richard Moodie said. "The girls played very well and we're also happy with our depth, as we got a lot of minutes from new players. Our players played hard and they came away with a win. It's a good start to the season."
Herrity's goal in the first minute of the contest came off a perfect cross from Lauren Wade (Coleraine, Northern Ireland). After a long run down the left side, Wade sent the ball into the box and Herrity outjumped the goalkeeper to head it in. This marks the second time in three games Carson-Newman has scored in the game's first minute. In their first NCAA Tournament game of 2015, Holly Talbut-Smith scored 59 seconds in against Armstrong State.
The teams traded opportunities for the rest of the first half but both goalkeepers made multiple saves to keep the score frozen.
Each squad began the second half by continuing to try and find twine, but it was Carson-Newman that added to their total. In the 56th minute, Holly Talbut-Smith(Crawley, England) netted her team's second goal, off an assist from Chelsea Jordan (Knoxville, Tennessee). After a cross into the box came to Jordan, she found Talbut-Smith with a pass at the far post, who fired a shot past goalie Liz Denton for a 2-0 Eagles lead.
This is the second consecutive year Talbut-Smith has scored in the season opener. Last year, her score in the 86th minute proved to be the game-winner in C-N's 2-1 victory over Trevecca.
In the 75th minute, Wade took a through ball from Talbut-Smith and iced the game by hitting a rocket past Denton from just inside the 18. In her debut with Carson-Newman, Wade totaled three points for the day.
Freshman keeper Jacqueline Burns (Cookstown, Northern Ireland) came up less than two minutes short of a clean sheet as the Trojans tallied their lone goal in the 89th minute, with Lydia Ogorodnik scoring unassisted. That was the one blemish on Burns' day, as she logged four saves and her first collegiate victory.
The women's soccer team plays their home opener on Saturday as they host Lees-McRae at 5pm. You can catch all action on cneagles.com.
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