Kuper named second team, highlighting C-N's SAC annual accolades
ROCK HILL, S.C. – Five Eagles of Carson-Newman women's soccer were awarded All-South Atlantic Conference honors, the league office announced Tuesday.
ROCK HILL, S.C. – Five Eagles of Carson-Newman women's soccer were awarded All-South Atlantic Conference honors, the league office announced Tuesday. This comes after a shortened spring season which saw six Eagles receive all-conference honors.
Senior defender Jente Kuper (Ottersberg, Germany) receives the lone second-team All-SAC honors for the fall as a quartet of her Eagles teammates are lauded with third team honors. Freshman Nellie Bryneus (Halmstad, Sweden), junior Addie Henry (Chattanooga, Tenn.), freshman Sydnee Duncan (Athens, Tenn.) and graduate student Lira Mathes (Knoxville, Tenn.) were named to the 2021 All-SAC third team as announced on Tuesday.
"The fact that we're still going is a testament to these players and I think any one of these players would give up these awards to be in the position that we're in right now," head coach Simon Duffy said. "Very happy for the players who are representing on the all-conference teams and hopefully we can continue on and bring home a conference trophy on Sunday."
Throughout the 2021 season, Kuper has made 15 appearances and 15 starts for the Eagles. In her time on the pitch, the Germany native has compiled 1,346 minutes of action as she has netted one goal and three assists to bring her season total for points to five. Her lone goal of the season was the game-winner in a thrilling 2-1 victory for C-N over their SAC rival, Tusculum, on September 29 from McCown Field. Kuper has also fired off eight shot attempts with only one being on goal.
In all four years as an Eagle, Kuper has been named to the All-South Atlantic Conference second team all four seasons. Last spring, Kuper received the honor after starting all seven matches for the Eagles where she collected an assist to go along with six shots and five shots on goal. Kuper was also part of a stifling C-N defense last spring who only allowed eight goals on 66 shot attempts by opponents.
"I think our players, both selections and not, are up for the task on Friday as we continue our season. We set out to make sure we would host a first round game and we have put ourselves in a position to be back in the conference tournament that we missed out on in 2019," Duffy said. "I'm really excited for our players to be back there, especially the freshman and sophomore who haven't really experienced the buzz of playing in Matthews. We'll have to be at our best if we want to compete with the likes of Catawba and we need to leave everything on the pitch on Friday."
Freshman Sydnee Duncan has been nothing short of impressive to start her Carson-Newman career. In 2021, Duncan has seen eight goals (including four game-winners), 35 shots, and 18 shots on goal to her ledger. Duncan's eight goals rank her seventh overall while her six goals in SAC play rank fourth overall. She has compiled 16 points this season which is 13th most in the category, while 12 of those have come against the SAC which moves her up to ninth overall. Finally, of her four game-winners which is second overall in the category, Duncan holds the SAC lead with three game-winners in conference matches.
The Athens, Tenn. native's eight goals and four game winners are good enough to lead the team at this point in the season while her 16 points tie for the team lead alongside fellow all-SAC third team member, Nellie Bryneus. Her 16 shots on goal are second on the squad behind Bryneus.
Addie Henry continues to be a major presence for the C-N midfield and forward line as she continues her Eagles career. This is her third straight season with all-conference honors as she was named honorable mention All-SAC during her freshman year before collecting second-team All-SAC honors last spring. She has made an appearance in 14 matches while being part of the starting XI for 12 of those. She has netted four goals this season to go along with a pair of assists for a season point total of 10. The Chattanooga native also has rocketed off 38 shot attempts with 15 being on goal, including a game winner. Most notably, Henry has stepped up and netted two penalty kicks this season.
Her four goals place Henry in a tie for third on the team in the category alongside graduate student Emilee Futrell (Wilson, N.C.) while her 10 points are sufficient for fourth on the team in such regard. In terms of shots and shots on goal, Henry is third on the team with her 38 shots while also being third with 15 shots on goal for the Eagles.
"This is our shot and in years past, we've been one or two in the region knowing that we would be going on to the National tournament," Duffy said. "We need to have the same kind of mindset that we held against a fantastic Wingate side last weekend. All of our players we need to step up as they have countless times this season. We need to go out there and prove we deserve to be out there as one of the top four teams in this conference."
Continuing the third-team honors for Duffy and his staff is another freshman standout, Nellie Bryneus. In 2021, Bryneus has six goals including one game-winner, four assists, 49 shots, and 24 shots on goal. Her six goals place her 11th overall in the category while her three against SAC competition is good enough for a top-20 placement in the league. Meanwhile, her four assists have mostly come against SAC foes as she has three in conference play which is 12th most. The Sweden native has rocketed 33 of her 49 shots during conference play, the 8th-most in the category. Finally, her 24 shots on goal place the freshman in a three-way tie for the category amongst SAC athletes.
The Halmstad, Sweden native is tied for the team lead with Sydnee Duncan at 16 points while being second on the team with her six goals. Her most recent goal came in the SAC Quarterfinals as she opened up the scoring for C-N after a Wingate miscue to make it 1-0 in the 14th minute. Bryneus is tied for the team lead with four assists alongside Emilee Futrell. She is second on the team behind Futrell in shots with 49 this season but does lead the team with 24 shots on goal.
The final All-SAC third team member for the 2021 season is none other than graduate student Lira Mathes (Knoxville, Tenn.).
Throughout the 2021 season, Mathes has seen the pitch in all 17 matches while being a part of the starting XI for 16 of those appearances. In action, Mathes has been responsible for 10 shot attempts and three shots on goal along with one assist this year. The Knoxville native has collected 1,497 minutes of action throughout 2021 which currently stands as the most minutes by an Eagle athlete this season. Her lone assist came in the very first match and on the very first goal scored this season as Mathes was the one to set up Nellie Bryneus to open the scoring against North Georgia.
As part of the Eagles backline, Mathes has helped C-N secure six shutouts against SAC opponents and only allow eight goals to SAC competition during the regular season. In 2021, Mathes and the backline have also held opponents to a shot percentage of .122 and only 10.1 shots per game.
The Eagles now turn their attention to the 2021 SAC women's soccer semifinals on Friday. Their opponent will be one still lodged in the memories of any Carson-Newman, the Catawba Indians, who took home a thunderous 7-0 victory over the Eagles earlier this season. So far in the postseason, Catawba defeated Newberry 1-0 in the quarterfinals to advance to Friday's semifinals.
The Indians also boast a quartet of All-SAC first team selections including the Offensive Player of the Year in Hannah Dunn and Defensive Player of the Year in Katie Beck. The Lady Indians are led by now the two-time reigning SAC Coach of the Year, Nick Brown, who has led the Indians to a 60-43-8 record since taking over in the spring of 2015.
"They're just like a Wingate with loads of talent and very well coached. They've been exceptional this year and I have upmost respect for them," Duffy said. "Anything can happen and we'll prep the girls to get them ready to go out and put out a performance deserving of a win."
Fans who cannot make it to the Matthews Sportsplex can catch a live broadcast of Friday's match via the SAC and Wingate University at this link as well as follow live in-game updates via Twitter from @CN_Eagles.
