By Dylan Vazzano, TTU Sports Information Coordinator
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – It was a goal the likes of which you dream about. Squared away at 1-1 in the early stages of the second overtime, sophomore Karigan Owens lined up for a free kick from about 35 yards out. As her fellow Golden Eagles flocked inside the box for a potential scoring opportunity, Owens decided to take matters into her own hands.
"I was really just thinking, hey its double overtime, so I'm just going to try and score right here," Owens calmly noted after the match, giving insight to her thought process on the crucial free kick.
The thinking was right on point as Owens lofted a soaring drive that hung high enough in the air to pop the question of "can that actually go in" into the minds of the nearly 500 witnesses at Tech Soccer Field. Eventually…question turned answer with a resounding "yes," as the ball floated past the leap of Austin Peay goalkeeper Lindsey Todd, and into the back of the net to give the Tennessee Tech soccer team (7-5-3, 5-1-0) a thrilling 2-1 victory.
"It was definitely exciting for our team to get a win like that, especially in front of our home crowd and in overtime," TTU head coach Steve Springthorpe said on Thursday's victory that pushes Tech to a 5-1 OVC record, the most conference wins in a season in program history. "Credit goes to Austin Peay, they played a great game. It was two teams tonight that were pretty even against each other, but we were able to find a way to get a goal in overtime."
Owens' captivating score was the second of the season for the La Grange, Ky. native, and smacked an exclamation point on a tremendous evening that saw the 5-foot-9 sophomore tally an assist in the first four minutes of that match to help jump the Golden Eagles to the early edge.
On yet another set piece, Owens smoked a corner in the fourth minute that deflected off the attempt of junior Abi Gearing, and in between the pipes to unwrap the match's scoring. Gearing's net-finder marked the third of the year for 5-foot-9 forward, tying her with fellow junior Kalyn Pruett for the team lead.
Gearing and Owens are now knotted for the Tech high with nine points, with Gearing earning all nine in the last six matches, and Owens notching all of her nine in the last seven tilts. Owens' five assists also put her in a tie for first in the OVC.
"It's really all about where my teammates are," Owens explained when asked about her set piece success of late. "They know where I'm going to play it and are always there. I've got to give the credit to them for finishing."
Austin Peay (6-8-0, 2-4-0) responded immediately to the Gearing goal, scoring a mere 43 seconds later behind a Gina Fabbro goal, the junior's eighth of the season. Fabbro collected a pass inside the box from sophomore Brooke Nigrin, before roping one home to tie the tilt at 1-1.
The early barrage of scoring proved to be short lived as the two squads combined to go scoreless for the rest of regulation, combining for nine second half shots. Tech turned it on in overtime though, ripping five shots in the first OT session, before scoring on the first shot in the second extra period.
Sophomore Zoie Hensley paced the Golden Eagles with four shots, tying herself with APSU freshman McKenzie Dixon for the most in the match. TTU won the shot battle, 16-14.
Freshman goalkeeper Kari Naerdemann registered three saves in the win, while the Governors' Lindsey Todd halted six attempts that came her way.
"I like the resolve from our team," Springthorpe claimed for his final sentiments on the eventful evening. "We don't have depth at times, and you saw Austin Peay make a lot of substitutions, but if you look at the overtimes, we had better play and a number of chances. That right there is the sign of a gritty team right now."
Thursday's compelling victory helps set the stage for Sunday's pivotal OVC battle with Murray State that will now pin the top two teams in the conference against each other at Tech Soccer Field. The Racers pulled out a 2-0 win over Morehead State on Thursday to move to 6-0 in the conference, while the Golden Eagles' 5-1 mark gives them a stranglehold on second place.
Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. CT, with a special Senior Day pregame ceremony set to occur shortly before the match that will honor Tech's four seniors, Allison Barlow, Taylor Blazei, Mackenzie Miller, and Taylor Sutton.
