By Dylan Vazzano, TTU Sports Information Coordinator
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – After helping lead the Tennessee Tech soccer team to the program's first ever victory against an SEC school, sophomore Mary Francis Hoots was recognized as the adidas® Ohio Valley Conference Defensive Player of the Week and freshman Kari Naerdemann was named as the adidas® OVC Co-Goalkeeper of the Week Tuesday afternoon.
"We are excited for those two individuals and the honors they received," Tennessee Tech head coach Steve Springthorpe said on the pair of accolades. "It's a testament to what they brought to our team this past weekend, specifically in the match against Alabama."
Hoots played a pivotal role in Tech's 2-1 victory over the University of Alabama Sunday evening, coming up huge both offensively and defensively for the Golden Eagles. The Nashville native broke a scoreless tie in the 17th minute with her first goal of the season, slipping one inside the far post to give TTU a 1-0 edge that sent a Tech Soccer Field record crowd of 961 into an early frenzy. Overall, the 5-foot-8 defender paced the Golden Eagles with three shots against the Crimson Tide.
Defensively, Hoots proved to be just as effective in the thrilling matchup with Alabama, making key play after key play inside the box to help slow down a relentless Tide attack that produced 18 shots, but just the one score.
Coupled with Tech's Friday match at ETSU, Hoots was one of five Golden Eagles, including Naerdemann, to play in all 180 minutes over the weekend. The pair is also two of four players to have suited up in all 374 minutes on the season.
As far as Naerdemann is concerned, the freshman recorded nine saves over the weekend, including five clutch stops in the history-making victory over Alabama. Of the nine weekend halts, eight came in the second half.
The Herne, Germany native has impressed in the early stages of the year, leading the OVC with a stellar .844 save-percentage. Naerdemann and the rest of the Tech defense have yet to allow a goal in the first half of a match this season, matching the 2004 Golden Eagle bunch as the last TTU team begin a season with four first half shutouts in a row.
"These two honors are also exciting for our team, because even though it's an individual that receives the award, it's really a team effort that helps them achieve it," Springthorpe noted. "We are thankful to the OVC for these two honors."
The conference honor makes it back-to-back seasons in which a Golden Eagle has been recognized by the OVC after Katie Phillips took home the Defensive Player of the Week accolades on Sep. 16, 2014.
Tech hits the road over the weekend, traveling to Georgia for a pair of matches. On Friday, Sep. 4, Tech will hook up with Mercer at 6 p.m. CT, before heading to Georgia State for a Sunday showdown with the Panthers at 1 p.m.
