COOKEVILLE, Tenn. -- Senior Taylor Blazei and junior Kalyn Pruett have been selected as the Tennessee Tech soccer team's captains for the 2015 season. The pair will lead the team into the season opener Friday night against Arkansas-Little Rock at 7 p.m., followed by a Sunday match at 4 p.m. against Middle Tennessee State.

"The team and coaching staff made the selection, and I think Taylor and Kalyn will do an outstanding job in leading this team as captains," said head coach Steve Springthorpe. "They have the respect of their teammates, and of the coaching staff, and they will do what they can to help us achieve our goals."

Blazei, a senior midfielder out of Slinger High School in Hartford, Wis., is in her fourth season at Tech and is the most experienced member of the team with 54 career matches to her credit. Last season, starting in all 19 matches, she led Tech in scoring with two goals and five assists, and also had the most shots (32) and shots-on-goal (14).

Pruett, a junior midfielder out of Father Ryan High Sschool in Nashville, heads into her third season on the field for the Golden Eagles. Last season she was one of five players to start in all 19 matches for Springthorpe's squad, finishing fourth on the team with 1,680 minutes played. She started 11 matche and played in 16 as a freshman, giving her 30 career starts as she begins the 2015 season.