CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. --- The Chattanooga soccer team travels to Furman and VMI this week for the final road games of the regular season. The Mocs will take on Furman Thursday, October 17 at Stone Stadium in Greenville, S.C., and then travel to Lexington, Va., to face VMI at Patchin Field Sunday, Oct. 20.
 
GAME DAY INFORMATION
Mocs at Furman
Site: Greenville, S.C. | Stone Stadium
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Links for live streaming on ESPN+ and live stats can be found on the women's soccer schedule page at GoMocs.com.
 
MOCS vs. PALADINS
The series between UTC and Furman dates back to 1996, Chattanooga's first season. The Mocs have yet to get a win over the Paladins, however, the last two meetings between the programs have ended in draws. On the road, UTC tied the Paladins 1-1 in 2022 after 15 losses.
 
ABOUT CHATTANOOGA (4-7-3, 3-3-0 SoCon)
The Mocs are one a two-game win streak with back-to-back 2-0 wins over SoCon foes ETSU and The Citadel. Chattanooga has 12 goals scored on the season led by Caroline Richvalsky with five. All five goals are assisted by Zoey Mize who leads UTC with seven assists. Richvalsky is 10^th in the league with 11 points and tied for seventh in goals. Mize is tied for the league lead in assists and tied for 14^th in scoring. UTC has eight different goal scorers. Caroline Ekern has played all 1260 minutes between the pipes, second best in the conference, and has a 1.29 goals against average, fourth best in the league.
 
ABOUT FURMAN (7-4-3, 3-0-2 SoCon)
The Paladins are riding a nine-game unbeaten streak with six wins and three draws. Overall, Furman is 7-4-3 and 3-0-2 against the SoCon and currently in a tie for third with Mercer and UNC Greensboro. The Paladins have 22 goals on the year led by Jenny Jacobson with four goals and nine points. Tara Katz and Nieva Gaither each have three goals and Valentina Masquera and Ellie Herrmann each lead the way with three assists. Reese DeJong, the current SoCon Defensive Player of the Week and Addison Corn have split time in goal this season. They have allowed 20 goals and have a 1.43 goals against average and .747 combined save percentage with four shutouts.
 
THE LAST TIME THEY MET
Last Meeting: 10/1/23, Chattanooga 1, Furman 1
Furman struck quickly with a goal at the 5:01 mark of the match. UTC's defense allowed just five shots the remainder of the half and kept Furman out of the net the rest of the way. It wouldn't take long into the second half for the Mocs to find the equalizer, but the winner remained elusive despite the onslaught of attempts for Chattanooga.Kennedy Heavrin picked up the ball at midfield and dribbled deep down the right side. She served up a pass to a charging Mackenzie Smith who picked up the pass in stride at the top right of the penalty box. She fired off a low liner into the left side of the net to tie the match 1-1 in the 49th minute. Later in the half, Heavrin's shot hit off the crossbar. Betha Pucek hit one off the post and two more shots by the Mocs were saved by Furman's Addison Corn. Chattanooga outshot the Paladins 23-11 with eight shots on goal. Keeper Caroline Ekern recorded five saves in her 90 minutes in goal.
 
MOCS LAST OUTING
Chattanooga 2, The Citadel 0 - Chattanooga | Finley Stadium
Sophia Mize scored her first collegiate goal in the first half and Sylvie Keck followed that up with her second career goal in the second half. In the 19th minute, Zoey Mize took the throw in and fought past a very aggressive Bulldog defense on the left side, just outside the penalty area. She fed her sister Sophia Mize who drove forward with a defender at her back. She pulled up about 15 yards out and fired off a shot into the top right corner for her first collegiate goal and the game winner. In the second half, the Mocs added to their lead with an insurance goal from Keck. Zoey Mize lined up the corner kick in the 53rd minute. Her pass into the net was headed in by Keck to put UTC up 2-0. The Mocs defense allowed just five shots in the game and the offense outshot The Citadel 22-5 with a 10-2 shots on goal advantage. Caroline Ekern made two saves including a laser in the final minute of the match to secure her 13th career shutout.
 
CHATTANOOGA NEWS AND NOTES
They Have a Connection
Zoey Mize and Caroline Richvalsky have a connection like no other. The pair have combined for six goals this season. All five of Richvalsky's goals were assisted by Mize while Mize's one score was assisted by Richvalsky.
 
SISTER ACT: The Mize Sisters
The Mize sisters Zoey, a junior and Sophia, a freshman, connected in a big way against The Citadel. Zoey fought through the Bulldog defense to feed Sophia just outside the penalty area. Sophia eluded her own defenders for her fist collegiate goal and the game winner against The Citadel at Finley Stadium on Oct. 10.
 
Zoey Mize Tied for SoCon Lead in Assists
Zoey Mize is tied for the Southern Conference lead for assits with seven. She is tied with Mercer's Kendall Cook. She assisted on the Mocs first goal of the season at Georgia State as well as the game winner at Jacksonville State and Wofford and the equalizer against Tennessee Tech. She fed Caroline Richvalsky for a fifth time with the Mocs second goal against ETSU. She assisted on her sister Sophia's first collegiate goal, the game winner against The Citadel and on a corner to Sylvie Keck.
 
Mize Snares Second Career Game-Winning Goal
Junior Zoey Mize notched the game-winner against ETSU this season. Caroline Richvalsky fed a pass to Mize at the top of the six-yard box who headed in the game winner. Last year, she had the game-winner against Mercer on a late goal.
 
Richvalsky Leads Mocs With Pair of Game Winning Goals
Caroline Richvalsky scored both of Chattanooga game winning goals this season. She scored the Mocs lone goal against Jacksonville State and clinched the match in the SoCon-opener at Wofford.
 
Mocs in the National Rankings
• Zoey Mize is 22nd for assists per game (0.50) and 18th in the NCAA for total assists with seven. She has assisted on all five Caroline Richvalsky's goals and had two against The Citadel (Sophia Mize, Sylvie Keck).
• Caroline Richvalsky is 116th for game winning goals with two, 45th for shots per game at 3.43 and 96th for shots on goal with 1.50 per game.
• The Mocs are ranked 137th for shot accuracy (.465), 159th for shots on goal per game (5.71) and 169th for shots per game (12.29). UTC is 160th for goals against average (1.286).
• Clarissa Salinas is tied with 280 players this year so far for penalty kicks. She is 1-for-1 with the game-tying PK against Georgia State. The Mocs are one of 130 teams to hit all PK attempts.
• Caroline Ekern is 57th in the NCAA for Goalie Minutes Played at 1260:00. She has played every minute in goal for Chattanooga this season.
 
Mocs in the Chattanooga Record Book
• Caroline Richvalsky is tied for ninth on the Mocs career list with 39 points. She has 15 career goals, also tied for ninth, and nine assists. She is seventh all-time with 162 shots taken.
• Zoey Mize is tied for fourth on UTC's all-time list with 13 assists, five off UTC's all-time mark. Her seven assists this season is also tied for fourth on the single season list. She tallied two assists in the Mocs win over The Citadel, marking the second time in her career that she has aided two goals in the same game.
• Caroline Ekern second on UTC's career list for wins with 20 and fourth with 13 shutouts. She is fifth with a 1.19 career goals against average and sixth for saves (163). Her 1.29 goals against average this season is currently tied for 10^th on the single season list.
 
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For the latest news and information on Chattanooga Mocs Soccer, visit the official website of Mocs Athletics at GoMocs.com. Fans can also follow the Mocs on social media at @GoMocsSoccer (X), @GoMocsWSoccer (Instagram).