JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – For the second time this season, Carson-Newman (3-1) will face off against a nationally ranked team on the road, when it heads to Salisbury, North Carolina for a clash against #9 Catawba tomorrow evening at 5:00 p.m.
After dropping its season opener, Carson-Newman has responded well by rattling off three straight wins, outscoring opponents 7-1 during this winning streak. It's the ninth time in the past ten seasons that the Eagles have held a winning streak of at least three games.
"We're keeping it simple," Carson-Newman head coach Simon Duffy said. "Clean sheets and score the first goal, which we want to pride ourselves on as a team. Very simple and as basic as it is, let's focus on those little things and be very good at those little things."
Sophomore defender Karli Pettitt (Oak Ridge, Tenn.) has a team-high two goals, while five others have also contributed in the goal scoring column through four games. Three players that have not scored a goal have at least one assist, led by Irish Miles (Augusta, Ga.) who has a team-high two assists. Nine different players have contributed at least one point this season.
Carson-Newman will aim to continue the success it has had over the past several meetings in Salisbury. The Eagles have a five-match unbeaten streak in road matches in this series, with a pair of 1-1 ties in the two most recent meetings at Frock Field in 2019 and 2022. The wins on the road came during the 2013, 2015 and 2017 seasons and were all by multiple goals.
It will be C-N's second opportunity this season to win a ranked game away from home. The program's last win over a ranked club was in Oct of 2018 versus #13 Limestone. It's been exactly 20 seasons since Carson-Newman's last true road win against a ranked team. That was a 2-1 win against #12 Catawba.
Once again, Catawba is projected to be one of the best teams in not just the South Atlantic Conference but in the Southeast region. The Indians earned nine first-place votes to take the top spot in the preseason coaches poll.
Nick Brown's squad is ranked ninth in the latest United Soccer Coaches poll, after starting the season unbeaten with a pair of wins and ties. They wrap up a five-game homestand to open 2024 with their conference opener. Catawba defeated #15 Embry Riddle and Georgia College in the first games of the season thanks to three goal efforts offensively in both wins. However, their last two contests have been low-scoring ties against West Virginia State and Montevallo.
"They are good, there is just no other way to put it," Duffy said. "Nick (Brown) has them well-versed and I know for their standards the two ties they will likely take as losses. I know the standards that Catawba has, similar to what we would like to have and have had in the past. It's going to be a great test for us on Wednesday. There is no tougher team to open up conference play with then Catawba."
The Catawba College Indians have been tough to beat at Frock Field, suffering just two losses since 2020 at home. There have only been seven ties since 2020 at home, two of which have come this season.
A plethora of talent is back for Catawba. It placed a league-high eight players across the three preseason all-conference teams with 4 first-team selections.
Reigning SAC freshman of the year Bree Ehmer has picked up where she left off in her rookie season. She has a team-high two assists so far this season and has a league-high 15 shots. Kelly Havens and Kylie Morin each have two goals to lead the way offensively.
First touch from Salisbury, North Carolina is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. A live stream of the game is available with a subscription to FloSports.
Fans can also follow along by following @CN_Eagles on X (Twitter) and Instagram for in-game updates.
