By Dylan Vazzano, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech soccer team is set to host Belmont Tuesday evening in a makeup of an originally scheduled Sept. 23 match that was postponed due to inclement weather in the Cookeville area. First kick from Tech Soccer Field is slated for 6 p.m. CT.
Admission is free of charge. The contest will be live streamed on the OVC Digital Network. Click here to watch.
A look at Tech
With TTU's originally scheduled tilt with the Bruins postponed, Tuesday will mark just the second time that the Golden Eagles (5-6-0, 1-3-0 OVC) have been in action in the last 11 days. Tech's only match in almost a two-week span was a 2-0 loss at four-time defending regular season champion Murray State on Friday, Sept. 28.
The Golden Eagles were last spotted at home Sept. 14 in a 2-0 victory over Jacksonville State in the OVC opener. The nod over the Gamecocks extended Tech's unbeaten conference streak at home to 13 straight, with the purple and gold collecting 12 wins and a draw over that span dating back to 2015.
Sophomore Kendall Powell is currently sitting in second in the OVC with a team-best six goals, while the Cookeville product is also leading the Golden Eagles with 23 shots and 14 shots on-goal. Junior Nora Vicsek is the only other Tech player to have produced double-digit shots with a baker's dozen for the 5-foot-6 forward out of Budapest, Hungary.
A look at Belmont
Tied with Southeast Missouri for the No. 4 spot in the conference's preseason predicted order of finish, the Bruins (4-4-2, 2-1-1 OVC) nearly went the entire month of September without a loss, but were upended 2-0 at home to SIUE on Sunday in the final day of the month. The loss snapped an unbeaten streak of six in a row that featured four wins and two ties over that stretch.
Julie Garst is the only Belmont player with more than one goal, entering Tuesday's tilt with four scores and one assist for a nine-point showing this season. The 5-foot-2 sophomore from Franklin, Tenn. is currently second in the OVC with 41 shots.
Goalkeepers Abby Hunt and Lily Herman have split time between the pipes this year, with Herman saddled with a bulk of the duties behind nearly 722 minutes in net this year. The Springboro, Ohio native has made 32 saves and has yielded 16 goals for a .667 save percentage and a 1.99 goals against average.
The Bruins hold a 9-8-2 edge in the all-time series, but Tech has won four clashes in a row, including a 2-1 victory in Nashville last season. The Golden Eagles also knocked off the Bruins twice in Cookeville in 2016, highlighted by a 3-0 nod in the first round of the OVC Tournament.
Photo by Tony Marable