No. 16 Carson-Newman Set For NCAA Tournament Showdown With No. 24 Anderson

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. — Coming off a 2-0 victory over Lander in the opening round of the NCAA Division II Men’s Soccer Tournament on Wednesday, 16th-ranked Carson-Newman hopes to carry its momentum into its first round matchup with second-seeded Anderson (S.C.).

The third-seeded Eagles (14-4-1) will take on the 24th-ranked Trojans (12-3-3) on Friday at 4 p.m. The match, which was originally scheduled to be played at Lees-McRae, will be held at Avery High School in Newland, N.C., due to heavy rains over the last several days in the Banner Elk, N.C., area.

C-N head coach Allen Vital said he is proud of his team for the way it opened tournament play on Wednesday against Lander.

“It was a good win for us and a good step for the team,” Vital said. “We hope we can keep it going and extend the season. It has been a great season so far. The guys have shown a lot of character.”

The Eagles enter the matchup having won 10 out of their last 11 matches, with the one loss coming in the South Atlantic Conference Tournament semifinals against fifth-seeded Tusculum. Sophomore forward Robert Hill (Middlesbrough, England) will return to C-N’s lineup on Friday after having to sit out the Lander match because of a red card he received in the SAC Tournament. Hill led the SAC in goals scored this season with 16, including a pair of hat tricks.

Anderson lost its last two matches, including a 2-1 loss to eventual Conference Carolinas Tournament champion Coker in the quarterfinals of the league tournament. The Trojans have had a pair of six-match winning streaks this season.

Vital said Anderson will provide the Eagles with a stiff challenge despite its late season struggles.

“They have a good team,” Vital said of Anderson. “(Anderson head coach) Rob Miller does a great job with those guys. They have played well since the beginning of the season though they have stumbled some lately, but that happens to everybody at some point in the year.”

“It will be a challenge for us. They have been No. 2 in the region for most of the season, and you must be talented to do that. We have to be ready to meet that challenge.”

The winner of Friday’s C-N/Anderson match will take on the winner of top-seeded Lees-McRae and Wingate on Sunday at 2 p.m. in Banner Elk, N.C. C-N defeated Wingate 3-1 earlier this season and played ninth-ranked Lees-McRae to a 2-2 tie before the match was postponed due to heavy rain.