Posted: Nov 05, 2021
VIDEO: Stephen Lyons Interview
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. - For the second time this season, Carson-Newman welcomes the Coker Cobras to McCown Field, this time in quarterfinal action in the 2021 SAC Men's Soccer Tournament on Saturday, Nov. 6.
The Eagles enter as the one seed for the eleventh time in program history, winning the SAC regular season championship. Carson-Newman has won just one conference tournament title. The Eagles defeated Newberry, Wingate and #21 Catawba en route to the conference tournament championship in 2005. That team finished the season 18-2-2 and made it all the way to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament.
Carson-Newman wrapped up the regular season with a 2-0 loss to #21 Lenoir-Rhyne. The Eagles are now 0-3-2 in the month of November under Stephen Lyons and just 3-5-1 against ranked opponents.
"Lenoir-Rhyne is a very good team," says head men's soccer coach Stephen Lyons. "We had an off day and good have done some things differently but I think it was a reality check before the conference tournament."
Carson-Newman has trailed for just 15:44 in regulation in home SAC matches. Coker lead the Eagles 1-0 from the 23' to 38'. In the Eagles lone SAC loss this season to Anderson, the Trojans did not lead until scoring the game-winning goal in double overtime. The Eagles have led for 55% of SAC matches this year, holding a lead for 491:31 of the 900 minutes played. Lenoir-Rhyne lead for 66:24, the second longest time the Eagles have trailed in a match this season. The longest C-N has trailed this season was for 80:44 in a 3-1 season-opening loss to Lee.
The Eagles enter the weekend 18-27-2 all-time in the SAC Men's Soccer Championship. The Eagles defeated LMU in the Quarterfinals of the 2021 spring tournament 4-0 before falling to Wingate in the semifinals 2-0 last season.
Coker is 1-3-2 all-time in the SAC Tournament since joining the conference in 2013. The Cobras lone regulation win came in 2019 against Carson-Newman. Coker advanced on PKs in the 2016 SAC Quarterfinals in a 1-1 draw against three-seeded Lenoir-Rhyne.
The Cobras and Eagles are deadlocked in the series at 5-5. Carson-Newman pulled off a come-from-behind victory the last time these teams met on the Eagles' Senior Day at McCown Field on Oct. 23, winning the match 3-1. Gabe Martin recorded his first career goal, while Thaylan Silva recorded his third straight brace in the win.
The two teams only meeting in the postseason came in the 2019 SAC Quarterfinals. Carson-Newman was also the one-seed while Coker was the eight-seed. The Cobras used four second half goals to pull off the upset, knocking off the Eagles 5-1. No team has scored five goals against the Eagles since then.
"This is a good Coker team," says Lyons. "The entire conference is good top to bottom. We have to focus on what we're doing and be ready to go tomorrow."
C-N has won back-to-back meetings against Coker just once in the series. The Eagles defeated the Cobras 4-1 at McCown Field on Sept. 22, 2018 and then knocked off #15 Coker in double overtime 1-0 in Hartsville on Oct. 12, 2019.
History can be made at McCown Field in the first minute of the contest. If Bram Kaarsgaren starts the match in goal for the Eagles, he will be come the fourth goalkeeper in Carson-Newman history to notch 40 starts in net. Kaarsgaren currently ranks fourth all-time in goalie starts with 39.
Kaarsgaren has been in top-form this season for the Eagles. His .783 save percentage ranks first in the conference and 33rd in the nation. His 1.06 goals against average is second in the SAC.
Thaylan Silva moved into the top-10 in career minutes played after tallying 79 minutes on the pitch in Hickory on Wednesday. Silva has now played 4207 career minutes in the orange and blue, and is jsut 46 minutes away from passing Samuel Jenkins for ninth most minutes played in program history.
Silva is also ranked 10th in career shots (160) and eighth in career shots on goal (64). His 19 assists are tied for fourth most in program history with Robert Hill.
Harry Whitehead has peppered the box with consistency for the Eagles. He is fifth in the conference with 48 shots this season with 21 shots on goal. Whitehead has found the back of the net five times this season.
After starting the season 7-0, the Cobras finished the regular season 3-6-1. Coker started the year 2-0 against the SAC and ended the regular season 3-6, including three straight losses. The Cobras were ranked as high as fourth in the nation during their seven-match winning streak.
Coker ranks sixth in the conference in goals with 33 this season. In their first seven matches, the Cobras outscored the competition 17-6. In their final 10 matches, the Cobras were outscored 16-18.
The Cobras lead the conference in shots per game with 16.8. Jacques Fokam-Sandeu leads the team with 52 shots this season. Fokam-Sandeu has been the offensive workhorse for the Cobras. He leads the team with 28 points, 52 shots, 26 shots on goal and has scored 12 goals. That mark ranks fourth in the SAC and 14th in the nation. Fokam-Sandeu recorded a goal in the first match between the Eagles and the Cobras on Oct. 23.
"The goal will be to slow him down again in the second half," says Lyons. "He's a good player. We'll need to make sure we're good switching defensively. We need to win our one on one's and the aerial battles for the ball."
In net, the Cobras are anchored by freshman Jasper Rump, who is third in the conference in saves with 57. Rump has a goals against average of 1.47 with four shutouts this season.
Coker leads the conference in red cards with six. Bastiaan Jager recieved a red card in the Cobras last match against Carson-Newman after a hard foul on Harry Whitehead in the 80th minute.
The two teams will collide at McCown Field at 7:30 PM on Saturday, Nov. 6. Fans who cannot make it to Mossy Creek, whether from Hartsville, east Tennessee or beyond, can check out the free livestream and follow along with live stats courtesy of the Eagle Sports Network. Fans can also follow along on social media on Twitter at @cn_eagles.
