Tech soccer picked to finish first in OVC’s preseason poll
At the end of each of the last three regular seasons, the Tennessee Tech soccer team has been sitting at the top of the league standings.
By Dylan Vazzano, TTU Sports Information
COOOKEVILLE, Tenn. – At the end of each of the last three regular seasons, the Tennessee Tech soccer team has been sitting at the top of the league standings.
Now as the start of another regular season inches closer and closer, the Golden Eagles are picked to be there at year's end once again. The Ohio Valley Conference announced its predicted order of finish, and for the third-consecutive campaign, Tech was chosen to win the conference.
The Golden Eagles garnered 14-of-20 first-place votes on the way to 156 points. Lindenwood, the defending OVC Tournament champion, received the other six first-place votes for a total of 146 points to finish in second in the poll. Little Rock was picked to finish in third, while Morehead State and Eastern Illinois rounded out the top five.
"We are grateful the other coaches and media relations personnel have picked us preseason number one, but understand that usually these things are selected based on prior success," Tech head coach Corey Boyd said. "Now we have to back it up on the field this season. Expectation is a privilege and we embrace it as part of our culture. We are looking forward to continuing to build upon the success over the last few seasons and hoping for another memorable one in 2025."
The Golden Eagles have claimed three consecutive OVC regular-season titles for only the third three-peat in the history of the conference and just second-ever outright three-peat.
In addition to the conference's predicted order of finish, the league recognized the returning All-OVC honorees as well as a list of Players to Watch. The Golden Eagles bring back a trio of returning all-conference performers in goalkeeper Maggie Conrad, midfielder Lucia Cuadra and forward Katie Toney. Tech's Player to Watch is midfielder Allison Lee.
Conrad, an All-OVC second-teamer from a season ago, posted the third-most saves in the OVC with 95 stops in between the pipes last year. The senior from Cedar Rapids, Iowa enters the year third on the program's all-time wins list with 23 victories and second in career shutouts with 17.
Cuadra is coming off a memorable first year in purple and gold on the way to an All-OVC first-team accolade last season. The 5-foot-2 graduate student led the OVC with nine assists, the second-most in a single-season in program history.
Toney enters her senior season on the heels of back-to-back All-OVC first-team campaigns to go along with an All-OVC second-team selection as a freshman in 2022. The forward from McMinnville, Tenn. finished tied for fifth in the OVC with seven goals last year to go along with three assists and 17 points, fourth-most in the conference. Toney's 16 career goals are already tied for eighth-most in school history, while her 13 career assists are the seventh-most and 45 career points are sixth-highest.
Lee's return to the purple and gold in 2024 saw her start all 20 matches, accumulating 1,505 minutes of action for the fourth-most among field players on the team. The Powell, Tenn. product finished tied for third on the team with three goals. Lee was a member of the OVC All-Newcomer team in 2022.
Tech will unofficially open the 2025 campaign with an exhibition match at Mercer on Friday, before the Golden Eagles kick off the regular season with a home match against Lipscomb on Aug. 14. Admission to all home matches at Tech Soccer Field is free of charge.
Photo by Thomas Corhern
