Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Middle Tennessee
UT Martin
Women's Soccer to continue Road Trip at UT Martin on Thursday
8/19/2026 9:53:00 PM | Women's Soccer
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – The Middle Tennessee women's soccer team will resume its three-match road trip on Thursday when it makes the trip to in-state foe UT Martin at 7 p.m.
The Blue Raiders (2-0-0) will visit the Skyhawks (1-0-1) at Skyhawk Soccer Field for the first time since 2013 as they look to win their first three contests of the season for the first time since 2019.
Quick Kicks
- After defeating Troy last Thursday, the Blue Raiders are now 11-10-4 in season openers under head coach Aston Rhoden, having now won two straight (Belmont, 2-1, Aug. 14, 2025).
- Middle Tennessee Soccer is now 6-6-3 in season openers as a member of CUSA.
- The Blue and White's back-to-back 2-0 wins to start the season mark the first time since 2015 that they have done so without conceding a goal.
- Sophomore defender Scottie Newton took home CUSA Defender of the Week honors on Aug. 18 after playing 174 minutes and leading her team to concede zero goals and the least amount of shots faced by any CUSA team (13).
- Team captains Hannah Murphy and Megan Carroll have been leading by example in 2026, as Murphy scored a penalty kick against Troy and Carroll scored her team's second goal against Southern Indiana to help MTSU to a 2-0 start.
- Thursday's matchup with UT Martin marks the first of three against in-state opponents, as the Blue and White will also face Lipscomb (Aug. 30) and Tennessee Tech (Sept. 13) during their their 2026 fall slate.
Series History
MTSU currently holds a 5-2-1 advantage in its all-time series with UT Martin, claiming victory in the last edition of the contest in Murfreesboro (2-1) on Sept. 8, 2019. The Blue Raiders will look to further improve upon their 2-1 record on the road against UTM.
Scouting the Skyhawks
The Skyhawks welcome MTSU after finishing 3-7-9 (3-3-3 Ohio Valley Conference) a year ago, finishing sixth in the conference standings. UT Martin was picked to finish fourth in the Ohio Valley Conference Preseason Poll this year after its 2025 season ended with a penalty shootout loss to SIUE in the first round of the OVC Women's Soccer Championship.
All-OVC forward Peyton Cook enters Thursday's contest with an assist to her name already, picking up where she left off last season as UTM's 2025 goals and points leader. Midfielder Unni Wolf leads the Skyhawks after her brace last time out at Chicago State in a 4-0 win. OVC Freshman of the Year Ava Huntrods and 2025 assist leader Addy McCleary also return for their sophomore seasons.
Cook and goalkeeper Mac Titus were named Returning All-OVC, while juniors Wolf and Millie Perry were named as Players to Watch for the 2026 season.
Four-time OVC Goalkeeper of the Week winner Titus returns as the Skyhawks' shot-stopper after making 87 saves with a program single-season-best .879 save percentage from 1,524 minutes of action in 2025. She also tied the program record for most shutouts in a season (7) and allowed the second-fewest goals per game (.71).
The Skyhawks are led by fourth-year head coach Mike Varga who has guided the Skyhawks to the OVC Women's Soccer Championships in each of his three seasons in charge.
Follow the Blue Raiders
Stay up to date with MTSU Soccer on Instagram (@mt_wsoccer), X (@MT_Soccer), and Facebook (Middle Tennessee Soccer).
