Eagles draw in home opener against Alabama-Huntsville

Carson-Newman (0-0-1) tied the University of Alabama-Huntsville (0-0-1) in its home opener 1-1 after double overtime.

“It was a typical season opener,” Carson-Newman head coach Richard Moodie said. “There were some good chances created by both teams.”

The Eagles went down early in the match when Klaire Phillips got on the end of a corner kick from Alexandra Klein and put it in the net.

However, Carson-Newman did not stop fighting. With 15 minutes left in the first half, Gabby Gianeselli (Knoxville, Tenn.) carried the ball down the left side, beat a defender and crossed the ball. Mikayla Gregg (Newport, Tenn.) met the ball on the other side for a one-timed volley to tie up the game.

Gianeselli led the Eagles in shots. Senior defender Lizeth Munguia took three shots with two on goal.“We can take a lot of positives from the game and look to build on that for our next game on Wednesday,” Moodie said.

Senior captains Sam Thomsit (Bristol, England) at center back and Tiarna McKenna at goalkeeper were missed on the pitch as they were out facing injuries. “We are hoping for a fully fit squad against Trevecca,” Moodie said.

Freshman goalkeeper Katy Hill (Farragut, Tenn.) came up big for the Eagles. She played the entire 110 minutes and had 13 saves, including two breakaways.

Carson-Newman hosts Trevecca on Wednesday, Sept. 11 at 5 p.m.