VIDEO: Richard Moodie Interview
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn - Looking to build on the momentum of their 1-0 overtime win over Anderson (S.C.) on Saturday, the Carson-Newman women's soccer team will be back at McCown Field on Wednesday night to host the King Tornado at 5pm in their final non-conference game of the regular season.
The Eagles have won six of their last seven and Saturday's victory over the Trojans was their most dramatic of the season. After nearly 94 minutes of scoreless soccer and with the match in the first overtime, Holly Talbut-Smith's (Crawley, England) cross found Alex Brandan (Knoxville, Tenn.), who buried the game-winner. Brandan's goal, her first of the year, broke a scoreless streak for the Eagles that lasted more the 180 minutes and gave the team its first one goal victory and its first overtime victory of the year. The win and the three points puts the Eagles in third place in the South Atlantic Conference at 4-1, as they trail first place Catawba by three points and Tusculum by one. C-N's overall record stands at 8-2.
"The team's been brilliant," Soccer Coach Richard Moodie said. "Our girls have been relentless, they keep working hard. They're doing exactly what we've asked them to do. I think we've seen in all so far. I don't think there's anything any team can throw at us that we haven't experienced."
After a remarkable start to the season, the Carson-Newman offense has slowed down of late, as they've been limited to only three goals in their last three games. The team has been able to win two of those contests, as they've allowed just one score during that time, with that one tally coming courtesy of Lenoir-Rhyne in the Bears' 1-0 win over the Eagles last week. Jacqueline Burns' (Cookstown, Northern Ireland) clean sheet against Anderson, her sixth in 2016, puts her at the top of the SAC with a 0.60 goals against average, while the C-N backline is averaging allowing just 3.2 shots per game, they fewest in the league. Burns has started every game as a freshman and has made 26 saves with a .813 save percentage.
Despite its recent doldrums, Coach Moodie's team still has an offense that ranks among the best in the country in scoring offense, goals and assists. Their 43 goals are 19 more than the next closest team in the SAC and their 36 assists and 234 shots also top the conference by a wide margin. Senior forward Julianne Herrity (Donegal Ireland) continues her second consecutive remarkable season, as she remains in the top five nationally in goals and points. She's tied for the SAC lead in points with teammate Lauren Wade (Coleraine, Northern Ireland), as they both have 28, which are 11 more than anyone else in the conference. Talbut-Smith and Anderson's Tina Shakes are tied for third with 17 each. Talbut-Smith, who assisted on Brandan's game-winner, is the SAC assist leader with seven, while Wade, who has missed the last four games, is still second in the SAC with 11 goals and six assists.
The King Tornado, out of Conference Carolinas, enters the match with a 3-6 record, but they are coming off a 5-1 trouncing of North Greenville on Saturday in which both Kendyl Baird and Miranda Smith logged a brace and the team was credited with 38 shots, 23 of them on goal. That triumph was also their first conference win of 2016 and snapped a three-game losing streak during which time King failed to register a single goal. Those three shutouts made five times this season the Tornado has been kept off the scoresheet, including once by Brevard, one of C-N's SAC rivals. This match will also be the team's first time on the road in more than three weeks, as their previous five games were all in Bristol.
"This is a good team that's maybe underperforming right now," Moodie said. "They're missing a few players due to injury, but I know for a fact they'll be well coached and disciplined and organized. If we can get off on the right foot and maybe get a goal early, I think we'll be able to win the game. It's a regional game, a must-win game, so we'll have to do our best to prepare the girls as best we can."
The Tornado does currently rank fifth out of 12 teams in Conference Carolinas with 15 goals, but 14 of those goals have come in three games, as King has scored at least four times in all three of their victories this year. Baird and Smith lead the offense with four goals apiece, a number that ties them for the fifth in the conference. Smith is also tied for the league lead in assists with four and tied for second in points with 12. Kara Garrett is the only other player on the team with multiple scores, as she has three and has scored in each of her team's victories.
Coach Simon Duffy has used three different players in goal through nine games. Senior Nicole Dagher started the season in net and has a 2-2 record with one of her losses coming by a 1-0 score against Brevard in the season opener, but her 2.25 GAA is the worst among the team's three net-minders. Junior Lauren Cox has started two games, but was beaten by Tusculum and Emmanuel (Ga.). The last three games have been seen redshirt freshman Lauren Cox take the reins and she is 1-2 on the year with 15 saves. She's also posted the best GAA on the team, with a mark of 1.76.
Wednesday's match will be the 13th between these teams in what has been an extremely one-sided series. The Eagles have yet to lose to the Tornado in 12 games. King and Carson-Newman met for the first time in 2000 and during C-N's 12 victories, they've outscored the Tornado 41-5. That includes a match in Bristol last year won by the Eagles 3-0 as they got goals from Herrity, Megan Peterson (Parrish, Fla.) and Varin Ness (Sogndal, Norway).
Wednesday's match will be broadcast live on cneagles.com/live with Mark Inserra on the call. Live stats will also be available and cneagles.com is where you can find the postgame recap.
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