The Chattanooga soccer team will hit the road to take on Mercer Thursday evening in Macon, Ga. The Mocs are 1-2 in Southern Conference action while the Bears are 1-1-1 in league play.
Chattanooga leads the series 7-5-2 dating back to 2002 before the Bears entered the SoCon. In league play, the series is tied at 4-4-2. At home, UTC leads 6-1-1 but are 1-4-1 in Macon.
Mercer scored the first goal in a 3-2 Mocs win midway through the first half. Clarissa Salinas booted in UTC’s first goal to tie the match nearly 10 minutes later off a free kick from Kelly Tuerff.
The Bears would once again move out front in the 75th minute taking a 2-1 lead. Hannah Opie sent a pass into the box for Caroline Richvalsky to tie the match 2-2 in the 86th minute. The game winner came in the 89th minute off a corner from Zoey Mize. Her shot into the box went over everyone and bent into the box for the Mocs third goal and game winner. UTC edge Mercer 15-14 on shots and 7-6 on shots on goal.
The Mocs fell 1-0 to UNC Greensboro. Chattanooga’s aggressive offensive effort led to five shots with three on goal in the first half. UTC outshot the Spartans 9-7 led by four shots from Caroline Richvalsky. The Mocs defense only allowed two shots on goal for the Spartans, but one found the back of the net for the game winner.
WHAT’S NEXT
October 6 vs. ETSU, Finley Stadium, 5 p.m.
October 10 vs. The Citadel, Finley Stadium, 5 p.m. SENIOR DAY
The Mocs beat Jacksonville State and opened league play with a win over Wofford. Chattanooga started the season with a tie at Georgia State and posted back-to-back draws against Tennessee Tech and Belmont. Chattanooga has eight goals on the year, averages 10.5 shots per game and a .470 shots on goal percentage.
Caroline Richvalsky leads the team with eight goals and is tied for 10th in the league standings. Zoey Mize, tied for second in the SoCon, has a team-high four assists. Mize has assisted on all four of Richvalsky’s goals. Clarissa Salinas has the team’s lone penalty kick while Paige Thomas, Brenna Swiger and Ella Attaway all scored their first goals for UTC this season.
The Bears are tied for fifth in the SoCon standings through three matches. Mercer leads the league with 30 goals and second for fewest goals allowed with 11. Larkin Thomason was named the SoCon Offensive Player of the Week for all competition Sept. 24-30. It was her second of the season. Thomason scored both goals in Mercer’s 2-0 win at ETSU. It was the Bears only competition last week. She leads the SoCon in goals scored with 11, tying her single-season high last season as a freshman. She is tied for third most in the NCAA. Jada Moorman is fifth in the SoCon with 12 points on five goals and two assists. Lindsey Bell has played 1080 minutes in goal and allowed 11 goals with a 0.92 goals against average. She has 34 saves, 2.83 per game and a 75.6 saves percentage.