VIDEO: Thaylan Silva Interview
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. -- A bevy of second half goals including a hat trick by Thaylan Silva lifted Carson-Newman to its most goals in the match since 2019, taking down Erskine 6-2 on Wednesday evening at McCown Field.
The São Paulo, Brazil native picked up the first hat trick of his career, becoming the first Carson-Newman (1-2) player to net three goals in a match since Tobias Solem Karlsen against Coker on Sept. 22, 2018. He is the 16th Eagle in program history to net a true hat trick. The last to score at least three times is a single game was also Solem Karlsen when he scored four times against North Greenville on Sept. 6, 2019.
"To be honest, we were really on the pressure coming from two losses, so the mentality was just scoring," Silva said. "We had created a lot of chances, first half, coming out at 0-0, so we just have to be critical in the final third. Coming out of the game with six goals, that's very important. Everyone had opportunities, so I think, I know it's going to sound kind of cliché, but the three goals just came natural because everyone was working so hard. We know how to score, so it just came natural. I'm happy for the hat trick."
Carson-Newman gets its first win on the season, snapping a string of three losses since the South Atlantic Conference semifinals on April 8, 2021. The four-goal differential with Erskine (0-3) marks the biggest win for the program since netting a 4-0 win over Lincoln Memorial on April 5, 2021. The 25 shot attempts taken by the crew are the most since sending out 36 on that same day, as well.
Four different Eagles scored throughout the contest with four goals alone coming within nearly 12 minutes of each other.
"It took us a little while to get in the game and take out opportunities," coach Stephen Lyons said. " Once we had the penalty there, I thought we dominated the play and just kind of pushed on, looked to create a lot more opportunities. Even when they scored, pulled one back, I think, again, we reacted well. So, a lot of positives to take from the game and something to build on."
C-N didn't find a shot attempt until the 32nd minute when Theo Hardenby Öhrwall (Helsingborg, Sweden) went just high. Prior to that, Erskine was outshooting the Eagles 3-0. By the break, shots were dead-even at three with Niels Buurman (Vienna, Austria) having the lone shot on goal on a header in the 43rd minute. It was the second straight match for C-N where it faced a scoreless stalemate at half.
A foul on Erskine in the 49th minute gave C-N a chance to take the lead for the first time this season. Silva sent his attempt past the left leg of Erskine's Evan Zizek as the keeper fell right. He is now a perfect 4-4 on penalty kicks in his career, moving him into a tie for the second-most makes and fifth-most attempts in program history.
Just seven minutes later, Erskine equalized the match on a shot from Dennis Cole from right outside the box off of miscue by Bram Kaarsgaren (Den Bosch, The Netherlands).
Moments after the goal, Erskine's William Mashburn was shown a red card, giving C-N a man-up for the rest of the match. The last time the Orange and Blue won a player advantage came in the April 1, 2021 win at Mars Hill. From there, Carson-Newman made the most of its advantage.
In the 67th minute, Yannick Kranz (Hannover, Germany) sent a cross deep into the penalty area from the outside of the 18-yard box that found the head of a leaping Matheus Maia (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) to put the Eagles back up by one. It was the senior's first goal since netting the game-winner against Tusculum on March 26, 2021.
oh MAIA gosh@MatheusMaiaMM9 uses his head to get C-N ahead.
— Carson-Newman Athletics (@CN_Eagles) September 8, 2021
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"I thought Maia did a great job when he came on," Lyons said. "Scored a great goal, brought just good energy. Having the ability for other players to come in which we had a number tonight and to be able to influence that play, we know we're going to need it in a long season."
Silva picked up his first multi-goal match in the 70th minute off a rebound from his own shot attempt. His second try deflected off the boot of a Flying Fleet defender, sending the ball skidding into the back right corner of the net to push the C-N lead to 3-1.
The midfielder's hat trick came in the 78th minute. Kranz delivered a shot drop-off to Silva near the top of the 18-yard box that he got past a diving Zizek, once again into that lower right corner, extending the lead to 4-1. The goal also gave him the fourth game-winner in his career.
First multi-goal outing? cool.
— Carson-Newman Athletics (@CN_Eagles) September 8, 2021
Have a hat trick, Thay
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Roughly 20 seconds after that, Hardenby Öhrwall joined the scoring parade after a nifty sideways pass from Daniel McIlroy (Larne, Northern Ireland). A quick step set the sophomore up for a one-on-one showdown with Zizek that the Erskine keeper missed on a diving attempt, giving the Orange and Blue a 5-1 advantage.
Hardenby Öhrwall turned around to provide an assist on C-N's final goal in the 85th minute. The midfielder sent in a corner that found an open Tim Vercelli (Münster, Germany) who quickly pushed the ball to Marius Opdahl (Jevnaker, Norway). The freshman wasted no time to chip an arching look into the back left of the net, giving the Eagles a 6-1 lead. With his goal, C-N moves to 11-0-1 in Lyons' tenure in contests where a freshman scores.
Less than 10 seconds after that goal, Erskine scored on yet another defensive miscue, this time right after the kickoff. Fernando Gonzalez sent a long pass to Corentin Serbource that he quickly flicked past a diving Kaarsgaren, cutting C-N's advantage to 6-2.
All-told, 12 different Eagles attempted shots throughout the contest with C-N outshooting the Flying Fleet by a substantial 25-5 margin with a 14-2 shot on goal differential. Those five shots are the fewest allowed by the Eagles since Lincoln Memorial attempted four on March 18, 2021. Silva led the pack for the Orange and Blue with six attempts, five on frame.
C-N's five assists are the most by the group since it tallied six in the 2019 contest with North Greenville, tying for the sixth-most in a single match in team history. Between the six goals and five assists, Carson-Newman's 17 points are tied for the ninth-most in program history. C-N lined up for a season-high 10 corners in the match.
In net, Kaarsagren made no saves throughout the match, allowing a pair of goals for the second time this season.
Cole led the Fleet with four shot attempts, his lone one on frame being his goal. Zizek was peppered into eight saves by the Eagles.
The next time C-N takes to the pitch will be on Sept. 15 as it hosts Mars Hill to open the South Atlantic Conference slate. Kickoff for that match will be 7:30 p.m. at McCown Field.
