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MOREHEAD, Ky. – After two home games to start the season and then a week off, the Morehead State women’s soccer team has taken to the road for the first time this fall, traveling to Chattanooga, Tenn., to face Chattanooga at Finley Stadium on Sunday at 1 p.m.

Despite a 4-0 NCAA Tournament defeat to No. 3-ranked Wake Forest in its last road game, Morehead State (1-1) has had success away from home under second-year head coach Paul Cox. The Eagles finished last fall with a school-record 6-4-4 true road mark. They also traveled to play an exhibition at Cincinnati earlier this month, falling 2-1.

“Chattanooga is an organized team with great experience with a good coach, which is going to be a tough game,” Cox said. “We’ve had a week to prepare and we feel prepared going into the game.”

MSU has had a week off since its last game. This season, the team will have four breaks lasting a week, including Aug. 17-24, Sept. 14-21, Sept. 28-Oct. 5 and Oct. 19-26. Last year, the Blue and Gold posted a 0-2-2 record after returning from a one-week layoff.

The Eagles won their first game of the season last Sunday with a 1-0 home victory over Austin Peay. Freshman defender Faith Peper scored the game-winner off an assist from senior midfielder Kennedy Baquero.

Sophomore goalkeeper Claire Cress has had an outstanding start to her season, collecting a career-high nine saves in the opener versus Marshall and then earning a shutout against Austin Peay. The shutout win over the Govs moved her into 10th place on the school’s career list with 3.5.

So far this season, MSU is averaging 0.50 goals per game, with six shots per game. The team’s other per-game stats include: 5.0 corner kicks, 13.0 fouls, 0.50 offside flags, 6.0 saves and 1.0 cards. Its opponents are averaging 1.5 gpg, 13 shots per game, 4.0 ckpg, 8.5 fpg, 0.50 offside flags per game, 1.5 saves per game and 1.0 cpg.

Freshman midfielder Charlotte Lee tops the team with four shots. Graduate student midfielder Karissa Vela and freshman forward Jade Walton are the only others with more than one. Each has two.

Cress has played every minute in the net and has a 1-1 record, a 1.5 goals against average, 12 saves, an .800 save percentage and one shutout.

Chattanooga (2-1) returns 17 players from its 2024 campaign in which the team finished 7-9-3 overall and 5-4-0 in the Southern Conference. The Mocs placed fifth in the league’s final standings. Ten newcomers joined the club this season. UTC was picked fifth in the conference’s preseason poll, while graduate student defender/midfielder Brenna Swiger was tabbed as a preseason all-conference team selection.

The Mocs opened the 2025 regular season with a 4-0 home win over Winthrop, before dropping a 1-0 road decision to Alabama in their second game. Last Sunday, they defeated Indiana State at home 5-3. Like MSU, Chattanooga has had a week off.

UTC is 2-0 at home this year. Its last defeat at home came against Western Carolina 1-0 in the final contest of the 2024 regular season. The club went 2-5-1 on its own field last fall.

As a team, Chattanooga averages 3.0 gpg, 12.67 shots per game, 6.0 ckpg, 11.0 fpg, 1.33 offside calls per game, 4.0 saves per game and 0.33 cpg. Its opponents sport 1.33 gpg, 14.0 shots per game, 3.33 ckpg, 11.33 fpg, 2.33 offside calls per game, 1.67 saves per game and 1.33 cpg.

Sophomore forward Paige Thomas paces the Mocs with three goals and six points. She also has taken five shots. Senior forward Carolin Richvalsky has two goals, one assist, five points and eight shots. Sophomore midfielder EG Dillard has one goal, one assist, three points and six shots. In total, six different players scored and six also assisted on a goal.

In the net, senior Caroline Ekern has a 2-1-0 record, with a 1.33 gaa, 4.0 saves per game, a .750 save percentage and one shutout.

Gavin McKinney is in his 11th year as head coach at the school. He owns a 72-83-29 record.

Chattanooga holds a slight 3-2-2 lead in the series. The two teams last played on September 19, 2021, in Tennessee, with the final score ending in a 0-0 double-overtime tie. MSU won the previous meeting, also in Chattanooga, 2-0 in 2017. Morehead State is 1-2-1 all-time against the Mocs in Chattanooga. However, the Blue and Gold is 2-0-2 in the last four overall meetings. UTC won the first three games in the series by a combined score of 14-2, including 6-1 at home in 1999 and 5-1 at home in 2001. However, Chattanooga has not scored against the Eagles in the last three outings.

In the 2021 meeting, MSU had a 14-13 advantage in shots and a 5-4 edge in corner kicks. It also had more fouls (14-13). The hosts had more saves (7-6) and offside violations (4-3). Both teams had one yellow card.

Live stats are available at https://gomocs.com/sidearmstats/wsoc/summary.

The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ at the link: https://shorturl.at/F5Vil.

The Eagles’ road swing will just be for one game as the team returns to Morehead to host archrival Eastern Kentucky on Thursday, Aug. 28 at 7:30 p.m.