JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. — Sophomore forward Robert Hill (Middlesbrough, England) tallied two first-half goals to lead top-seeded Carson-Newman past eighth-seeded Catawba, 3-1, on Tuesday in the opening round of the 2009 Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Men’s Soccer Tournament at McCown Field.

With the win, the 15th-ranked Eagles (13-3-1) advance to the semifinals, where they will take on fifth-seeded Tusculum on Friday at 3 p.m. at Manchester Meadows in Rock Hill, S.C. Catawba ends its season at 5-12-1.

C-N controlled possession for most of the night as it outshot the Indians 26-6, including a 10-4 advantage in shots on goal.

“We had control for the most part and that was good to do,” Eagles head coach Allen Vital said. “It was just a good win. We did what we had to do. Overall the guys played well.”

Hill gave the Eagles an early 1-nil in the eighth minute. He controlled a cross from senior Omar Cooke (Roanoke, Va.) and placed it into the back of the net.

Catawba answered in the 26th minute, as Kirby Freeland (Charlotte, N.C.) fired a shot into the back of the net to tie the match at 1-1.

But C-N took the lead for good less than two minutes later. Hill finished off a deflection in the 27th minute to give the Eagles a 2-1 advantage. Cooke and Ben Backstrom (Knoxville, Tenn.) were credited with the assist.

Cooke added a goal in the 77th minute off a corner kick from Daniel Tackling (Norwich, Conn.) to put the match out of reach.

C-N junior goalkeeper Jordan Moore (Hendersonville, Tenn.) surrendered one goal and collected three saves to pick up the win, while Catawba’s Tyler Held (Virginia Beach, Va.) allowed three goals and finished with seven saves in the loss.