By Dylan Vazzano, Sports Information Coordinator
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech soccer team will put a lid on its non-conference slate over the weekend, closing out pre-OVC action with a pair of road contests as the Golden Eagles (4-2-1) head to Radford Friday evening and Western Carolina Sunday afternoon. Friday's tilt with the Highlanders (1-3-0) is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. CT, and Tech's battle with the Catamounts (2-6-0) will start at noon CT.
Tied for their third best seven-match start in program history, the Golden Eagles are coming off a successful showing in its previous two matches against in-state competition. Tech seized a 3-0 win over Middle Tennessee in Murfreesboro on Sep. 9, tying a season-high in goals, before playing ETSU to a 1-1 draw on Sep. 11 to wrap up last weekend's play.
TTU's blanking over the Blue Raiders was the club's fourth shutout of the season, a mark that puts the Golden Eagles in second in the OVC while Sunday's deadlock with the Buccaneers did feature a Tech season-best 26 shots, highlighted by an Abi Gearing goal, the senior's team-leading fourth of the year.
Gearing's goal came off a Karigan Owens corner kick in the 58th minute that netted the 5-foot-9 junior with her OVC-best sixth assist of the season, and third of the weekend, after claiming two in Friday's match with MTSU. In fact, thanks to a goal against the Blue Raiders as well, Owens tallied a five-point weekend that helped lead the La Grange, Ky. native to the OVC Defensive Player of the Week honor, one of two weekly awards for the Golden Eagles as Kari Naerdemann took home the conference's Goalkeeper of the Week accolade.
Owens' honor marked the second time in the last three weeks in which she has lifted some conference hardware after being named the OVC Offensive Player of the Week on Aug. 30, following a four-point performance in an Aug. 28, 3-0 win over Mercer. Naerdemann secured her third career OVC Goalkeeper of the Week distinction behind 12 saves in the two in-state battles, punctuated by her 11th career shutout, second most in program history.
Tech's tilt with Radford will be the 10th in the all-time series between the two squads with the Highlanders holding a narrow, 5-4, edge in the previous nine meetings. Last year's get together in Cookeville saw a thriller unfold at Tech Soccer Field, one that was captured by the Golden Eagles with 10 seconds left in the second overtime thanks to a Mayra Tarraga Manzanal goal, the Gerona, Spain native's first career score.
Sophomore Jasmine Casarez has paced the Highlanders with two goals in four matches this year while junior Jordan Lundin's two assists is tops on team.
Sunday's matchup with Western Carolina will be the fourth time this season that Tech has locked up against a school from the Southern Conference with the Golden Eagles posting a 1-1-1 record in the previous three affairs against UNC Greensboro, Mercer and East Tennessee State. The Catamounts will be playing an OVC squad for the third-straight match after falling at both Morehead State and Eastern Kentucky last weekend.
Red-shirt junior Kasey Cooke and freshman Kyla Moncrief lead WCU with two goals each and sophomore Sayres McKenna boasts a club-high three assists on the season.
Western Carolina has captured four of the five all-time meetings in the series with TTU.
Photo by Tony Marable
