Carson-Newman Women's Soccer Position Previews: The Defenders and Goalkeepers 8-21-21
This is the final part of a three-part series previewing the 2021 Carson-Newman women's soccer program.
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – This is the final part of a three-part series previewing the 2021 Carson-Newman women's soccer program. This feature will focus on the defenders and goalkeepers, where the Eagles return the most athletes.
The defender position features a selection of super seniors in Kate Zander (Baneberry, Tenn.), Kristina Markfort (Munster, Germany), Lira Mathes (Knoxville, Tenn.), and Madison Huffstetler (Maryville, Tenn.) along with rising seniors in Jente Kuper (Ottersberg, Germany) and Emma Daniels (Knoxville, Tenn.).
The Eagles will also see a combined four juniors and sophomores returning to build the backline of defense. The Eagles return junior Natalie Ledin (Stockholm, Sweden), sophomore MJ Park (Chattanooga, Tenn.), sophomore Noel Criser (West Yarmouth, Mass.), and sophomore Trystan Wepking (Nolensville, Tenn.) along with one new backline defender for the fall.
As for the goal-minders, C-N returns all three goalies from the spring including sophomore Lilly Ebner (Hohentengen, Germany), sophomore Jenna Rehm (Old Hickory, Tenn.) and junior Hope Doyle (Harrison, Ohio).
"This group is really strong, and the chemistry is really great under the leadership of players such as Lira and Jente," Criser said. "I'm just excited to get back out there with this group and play in the fall. Just because everyone came back, I think this chemistry will be strong."
Mathes saw another year in Mossy Creek be a success as she was named to the second-team All-SAC squad. The Knoxville, Tenn. native found the back of the net three separate times in 2021, including a brace against the Mars Hill Lions. The senior also was nearly perfect with her shot attempts as she took five shot attempts and had four find the frame.
Markfort saw her second straight second-team All-Conference laurel after receiving the same honor in 2019. In the spring 2021 campaign, Markfort started in five of the seven games for C-N and was an imposing threat for opponents to face. She was a crucial key to opponents only collecting 23 total points throughout the spring season while helping C-N keep opponents to only scoring eight goals on 66 shot attempts.
In her debut season as an Eagle, Zander started in six out of the seven games for Carson-Newman's backline. She, along with the rest of the C-N defense, maintained a stronghold as opponents were held scoreless twice and shot .121 overall.
Kuper was tabbed an All-South Atlantic Conference second-team member following the spring 2021 season. The Germany native started in all seven matches for the Eagles while collecting an assist to go along with five shots on goal and six total shot attempts.
Huffstetler made another impressive mark in her C-N campaign as she made two appearances for the Eagles, including one start in the spring 2021 campaign. As for Daniels, the last returning senior defender, the Knoxville native made three appearances, with one start, for C-N and had one shot attempt fall on frame.
"I'm just excited to play more games and see more conference teams in a full season," Criser said. "It's exciting and I love the challenge with the teams we play in this conference. I'm just overall excited to get back out there and play with the team."
Ledin returns to Mossy Creek after a spring 2021 season which saw the Sweden native hold a place as a member of the starting XI in four of the seven C-N matches while collecting one shot attempt.
Another component to the strong Eagles defense was Criser. In her debut season as an Eagle, Criser was a member of C-N's Starting XI in all seven matches while holding opponents to the staunch .121 shooting percentage over the season.
Both MJ Park and Trystan Wepking return to Mossy Creek after not seeing any action in the fall for Duffy and his staff.
The newest Eagle addition is a defender by way of Switzerland in Alisha Heiniger (Duerrenroth, Switzerland). Before coming to Mossy Creek, Heiniger was team captain for several years, winning most matches as part of her high school team. Her 2020 team were set to be champions prior to the season being cut short. Heiniger was part of the runner-up squad (U17 of YB Bern) in the Swiss Championship.
Moving onto the net-minders, it was Lilly Ebner who took the chance to shine bright during her debut season. The Germany native was named as the All-SAC honorable mention goalkeeper following the spring 2021 campaign. Ebner collected the sixth-most saves in the league with 28 to go along with seven goals allowed all season. Her .800 save percentage in 2021 ranks her seventh in Carson-Newman history for single-season save percentage.
Doyle made two appearances for C-N in her first year as an Eagle. She allowed one goal over 78:16 minutes of action while collecting two saves and her first Eagles victory against Mars Hill. Finally, the Ohio native compiled a GAA of 1.15 with a save percentage of 0.667.
Rehm did not see any action during the spring campaign.
The Eagles will kickoff the 2021 fall campaign on September 2 as they welcome the North Georgia Nighthawks for a 3 p.m. kickoff from McCown Field. Be sure to keep up with all things Carson-Newman women's soccer at cneagles.com and via social media.
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