Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Reaching her goals
4/27/2020 5:00:00 PM | Women's Soccer, BRAA
MURFREESBORO - The clock read 34:44. Middle Tennessee found itself deadlocked at 1 with conference rival UAB in its last home soccer game of the season on November 1.
"I can remember being a bit nervous before the game just because it was in the back of my mind," said star MT women's soccer player Peyton DePriest.
The "it" DePriest referenced was MTSU's all-time career goal record set by Holly Grogan in 2007. DePriest, just a junior, entered the night against UAB tied with Grogan with 38 goals.
The clock ticked down to 34:43. MTSU defender Casey Riemer lofted the ball toward the center of the UAB box where it came down near her teammate, Sam DeBien. A UAB defender jumped out of her position in front of DePriest to defend the pass to DeBien, freeing up DePriest, which would prove to be a big mistake.
The clock hit 33:42. The UAB defender's eyes lit up as she realized she was grossly out of position. She'd left DePriest all alone in front of the box as DeBien struck the ball with her forehead. The clock kept winding towards history.
"The UAB center defender had to leave Peyton to try and pick up the ball going to Sam," explained MT head coach Aston Rhoden. "I remember a UAB coach yelling at the defender 'All you have to do is stay with (Peyton)!'"
34:41: DePriest gathers the ball with her left foot and swings her right leg back violently, as if she intends to take the net off its moorings with her kick. And make record-holder Grogan a former record holder.
34:40: DePriest's right cleat smacks the ball squarely, sending it rocketing toward the net. She's now on the precipice of history.
"I felt like the record is something special for me because I feel like I've grown a lot as a player," DePriest said. "I feel like everything is coming together with all the hard work we've all done together as a team."
34:39: The ball careens off the side post and into the back of the net. The Blue Raiders take a 2-1 lead and DePriest etches her name into MT's history books.
Five seconds was all it took to write a storybook ending to MTSU's season, and add an exclamation point to DePriest's three-year career.
DePriest would go on to score another goal, helping the Blue Raiders win the game 4-2, and sending them to the conference tournament.
"Every single one of my teammates contributed to what I was able to do this season, including the record," DePriest said. "The girls challenged me in practice every day. The seniors really pushed me to be better this season. I really wanted to do the best I could for them. But really, all of the girls helped me so much."
The prolific forward later acknowledged that Blue Raiders of old and the chance to break a school record drove her this past year.
"I've never actually spoken to (Grogan), but if I could, I'd definitely thank her for setting the standard so high for myself and getting the program on the track to where it is today," she said.
Along with her (now) 42 career goals, DePriest currently also holds the team records for best-career shot percentage (.252) and single-season goals per game (1.07 in 2019).
While it's likely she'll break more records as a senior, she said she doesn't want her name to be atop the record books for long.
"Absolutely, I'd love to see my (career goals) record be broken," DePriest said. "I expect the growth and the progression of MTSU and women's soccer in general to be better than the past, so I definitely expect it to be broken."
No matter how long she sits atop the MT career goals record list, DePriest will always remember the five seconds that got her there.
A Coaching Perspective
Although Peyton DePriest's 39th goal against UAB on November 1 was the goal that broke MT's career record, MT women's soccer coach Aston Rhoden says that wasn't necessarily DePriest's most important goal of the season.
"The goal that summed up the year she had may have been the goal at (UTSA on Sept. 22)," Rhoden said. "I say that because it was the first game she came back from her injury. I think that was the goal that instilled a tremendous amount of confidence in her as a forward and led her to a lot of the other goals after that."
The Blue Raiders went through a lull in the middle of the season when DePriest went down with an injury, dropping four out of five contests. Following her goal in double overtime to defeat UTSA in her first game back, DePriest and the Blue Raiders went on to earn points in six of their remaining 10 matches of the year.
"After Peyton scored that goal at UTSA, the team started to score more," Rhoden said. "Everybody knows that Peyton is a player they need to worry about, but if they do that and they overplay her, then the other players can score. Opponents can't focus solely on her."
Anthony Fiorella is a writer for goblueraiders.com. Follow him on Twitter @a_fiorella74 and also follow @MTAthletics for more on the Blue Raiders.
"I can remember being a bit nervous before the game just because it was in the back of my mind," said star MT women's soccer player Peyton DePriest.
The "it" DePriest referenced was MTSU's all-time career goal record set by Holly Grogan in 2007. DePriest, just a junior, entered the night against UAB tied with Grogan with 38 goals.
The clock ticked down to 34:43. MTSU defender Casey Riemer lofted the ball toward the center of the UAB box where it came down near her teammate, Sam DeBien. A UAB defender jumped out of her position in front of DePriest to defend the pass to DeBien, freeing up DePriest, which would prove to be a big mistake.
The clock hit 33:42. The UAB defender's eyes lit up as she realized she was grossly out of position. She'd left DePriest all alone in front of the box as DeBien struck the ball with her forehead. The clock kept winding towards history.
"The UAB center defender had to leave Peyton to try and pick up the ball going to Sam," explained MT head coach Aston Rhoden. "I remember a UAB coach yelling at the defender 'All you have to do is stay with (Peyton)!'"
34:41: DePriest gathers the ball with her left foot and swings her right leg back violently, as if she intends to take the net off its moorings with her kick. And make record-holder Grogan a former record holder.
34:40: DePriest's right cleat smacks the ball squarely, sending it rocketing toward the net. She's now on the precipice of history.
"I felt like the record is something special for me because I feel like I've grown a lot as a player," DePriest said. "I feel like everything is coming together with all the hard work we've all done together as a team."
34:39: The ball careens off the side post and into the back of the net. The Blue Raiders take a 2-1 lead and DePriest etches her name into MT's history books.
Five seconds was all it took to write a storybook ending to MTSU's season, and add an exclamation point to DePriest's three-year career.
DePriest would go on to score another goal, helping the Blue Raiders win the game 4-2, and sending them to the conference tournament.
"Every single one of my teammates contributed to what I was able to do this season, including the record," DePriest said. "The girls challenged me in practice every day. The seniors really pushed me to be better this season. I really wanted to do the best I could for them. But really, all of the girls helped me so much."
The prolific forward later acknowledged that Blue Raiders of old and the chance to break a school record drove her this past year.
"I've never actually spoken to (Grogan), but if I could, I'd definitely thank her for setting the standard so high for myself and getting the program on the track to where it is today," she said.
Along with her (now) 42 career goals, DePriest currently also holds the team records for best-career shot percentage (.252) and single-season goals per game (1.07 in 2019).
While it's likely she'll break more records as a senior, she said she doesn't want her name to be atop the record books for long.
"Absolutely, I'd love to see my (career goals) record be broken," DePriest said. "I expect the growth and the progression of MTSU and women's soccer in general to be better than the past, so I definitely expect it to be broken."
No matter how long she sits atop the MT career goals record list, DePriest will always remember the five seconds that got her there.
A Coaching Perspective
Although Peyton DePriest's 39th goal against UAB on November 1 was the goal that broke MT's career record, MT women's soccer coach Aston Rhoden says that wasn't necessarily DePriest's most important goal of the season.
"The goal that summed up the year she had may have been the goal at (UTSA on Sept. 22)," Rhoden said. "I say that because it was the first game she came back from her injury. I think that was the goal that instilled a tremendous amount of confidence in her as a forward and led her to a lot of the other goals after that."
The Blue Raiders went through a lull in the middle of the season when DePriest went down with an injury, dropping four out of five contests. Following her goal in double overtime to defeat UTSA in her first game back, DePriest and the Blue Raiders went on to earn points in six of their remaining 10 matches of the year.
"After Peyton scored that goal at UTSA, the team started to score more," Rhoden said. "Everybody knows that Peyton is a player they need to worry about, but if they do that and they overplay her, then the other players can score. Opponents can't focus solely on her."
Anthony Fiorella is a writer for goblueraiders.com. Follow him on Twitter @a_fiorella74 and also follow @MTAthletics for more on the Blue Raiders.
Players Mentioned
MTSU Soccer vs UTEP Recap 10/19/25
Tuesday, October 21
2025 MTSU Soccer Senior Sit Down
Friday, October 17
True Blue Testimonials - Yana Yordanova MTSU Soccer Midfielder - Presented by MMC
Tuesday, September 23
MTSU Football Weekly Presser Wisconsin 9/01/25
Monday, September 01
