By Dylan Vazzano, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The wait is over for the Tennessee Tech soccer team. For the first time in 504 days, the Golden Eagles will host a match in Cookeville, as TTU welcomes Eastern Illinois to Tech Soccer Field for Friday's home opener with the Panthers. First kick is slated for 4 p.m. CT.
Fans will be allowed at Tech Soccer Field, with admission free of charge, but will be required to socially distance and wear face coverings. Capacity will be limited to one-third of the stadium's original capacity of 800 due to COVID-19 protocols.
The match will broadcast live on ESPN+. Click here to watch. Live stats are also available. Click here to view.
A look at Tennessee Tech
The Golden Eagles (2-0-0) enter Friday's affair as one of just four remaining unbeatens in the OVC, joining SEMO at 2-0-0, while Murray State and SIUE both boast 3-0-0 marks. The last team in the conference to play a home match, Tech comes into the home opener behind back-to-back 1-0 nods, first winning at Austin Peay on Mar. 2 before securing a 1-0 victory at Morehead State on Tuesday.
TTU's triumph in Clarksville saw the Golden Eagles pick up a Meredith Nye goal in the 32nd minute for the freshman's first career score, while Tuesday's tilt in Morehead featured its fair share of dramatics behind a Chloe Smith game-winning goal in the 88th minute to account for the scoring.
Sophomores Sarah Block and Bailey Taylor have Tech's two assists this season, with Block assisting on the Nye net-finder and Taylor setting up Smith's dramatics in Morehead.
The Golden Eagles are the only team in the conference to have not yielded a goal so far in the season's early stages. The Tech defense has surrendered just 15 combined shots in the two contests, only seven of which have been on-goal. Senior keeper Isabelle Austin has tallied seven saves this year en route to her fourth and fifth career shutouts.
Offensively, Cassidy Bereda has paced the purple and gold with five total shots, while Chloe Smith's three on-point is the most on the club.
A look at Eastern Illinois
The Panthers (1-2-0) are coming off one of their tougher losses in recent recollection after falling 7-0 at home to SIUE on Tuesday. EIU split its other two contests this spring with a 1-0 loss at UT Martin on Mar. 2 and a 1-0, double-overtime win over Morehead State on Mar. 5.
Senior Haylee Renick has the club's lone goal this season behind a game-winning strike in the 105th minute in EIU's thrilling victory over Morehead. Zenaya Barnes and Nicoletta Anuci lead the team with five shots each. Barnes has paced the Panthers with four shots on-goal.
Redshirt-sophomore Daniela Bermeo has been the only Panther to appear in between the pipes this season and has allowed eight goals to go along with 17 saves in the squad's trio of matches.
Eastern Illinois was picked to finish eighth in the OVC"s predicted order of finish. The Panthers posted a 4-10-4 overall record in 2019 with a 2-5-3 mark in OVC play. EIU defeated Tech in the opening round of the OVC Tournament before falling to SIUE in the quarterfinals.
Inside the series
Eastern Illinois possesses a 19-4-7 lead in the all-time series with Tennessee Tech. The Panthers have had the upper hand of late with a 2-0-2 record over the last four matches, which includes ending Tech's season in back-to-back years. EIU knocked the Golden Eagles out of the OVC Tournament with a 2-0 victory in the opening round in 2019, and in the last Cookeville meeting in 2018, the Panthers took home a 2-1 win on the final day of the regular season that kept TTU out of the OVC Tournament.
Tech's last win in set was a 2-0 triumph on Oct. 23, 2016 in Cookeville.
File photo by Morehead State Athletics
