Lady Vols Soccer ⚽️ SEC TOURNAMENT 11/3-11/10

#2,177
#2,177
turbovol said:
Tennessee's 2022 schedule has not been released, but some games are on the books. This is what we've got so far:

DATE OPPONENT 2021 Record 2021 RPI

8/13 Dayton (EX) 12-6-1 132

8/21 SMU 12-5-2 23

8/25 Duke 16-4-1 2

8/31 Bowling Green 11-7-3 66

9/18 Kennesaw St. 9-8-2 138

9/16 at Florida 4-12-4 123

10/14 LSU 11-8-1 49


As noted, our first regular-season game, after an exhibition against Dayton, appears to be against an SMU team that was good last year. Pensky, before leaving, mentioned that we were playing both UNC and Duke this season. The Duke game is on; not sure about UNC yet. It could be on--we should have at least one if not two additional out-of-conference games--but hasn't been listed. We shall see.

Our first SEC matchup seems to be against Florida--or it might be our second. Not quite sure. Of the games listed, all but the Florida game are at home. Getting a result against Duke (either a tie or a win) would be huge for our RPI but it's obviously going to be a tough match--Duke is good/very good every year.

Some games are actually scheduled for August 8, if you can believe it. That is early!

FYI, Pensky's first regular-season game as FSU coach appears to be against South Carolina--his/our old SEC rival. You can bet that SC coach Shelley Smith, who is very competitive and a bit of a bad sport, IMO, will be dying to knock off FSU in Pensky's first regular-season contest. He will not want to lose that game, but SC is always tough to be beat with their good defense.
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Looks like the Vols will end the season in Knoxville against Vanderbilt

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#2,178
#2,178
FAU Adds Four Transfers to Roster - Florida Atlantic University Athletics

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Emily Schleifer, Lake Worth, Fla. (America Heritage High School) University of Tennessee, Midfielder
Schleifer returns home to the south Florida area after playing for the Tennessee Volunteers last season. She recorded her first collegiate goal against Tennessee Tech. While she played for American Heritage, Schleifer was a First-Team All-American and a two-time Florida Player of the Year.
 
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#2,180
#2,180
mad4vols said:
How did Tennessee let this star slip through?
USC commit

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Hard to say. She's committed to USC, so she's obviously got some qualities, but it may be that our coaches simply weren't all that taken with her overall skill set. I will say that we've consistently out-recruited South Carolina over the last, say, 5 years--but it's also true that no coach in America gets more out of her talent than S. Smith of the Gamecocks. We have more talent--but she does get results consistently.

It's not like the Vols haven't been keeping tabs on in-state talent: We've got commitments from 5 in-state players for '22 and '23--all of whom play for the Tennessee Soccer Club. That is FAR more local talent than we ever had in the last 10 years. Whether that's a good thing or a bad thing remains to be seen--but at least 2/3 of them look to have a lot of potential. One had been an Ole Miss commit but we turned her. Pensky can recruit--and Kirt and Co. will have to maintain his success if we want to become a regular national contender. Of course Kirt and Morgan have been involved in recruiting for years--and I assume pretty heavily--but you need the head coach to close the deal on top prospects. I think--hope-- our new assistant coach will be an asset to our recruiting.

Speaking of recruiting, What I've learned from watching a lot of college--and specifically--UT soccer is that, first, you need a good, tough, PHYSICAL defensive midfielder. It's no accident that the two best teams we've had the last 10 years have had one--Cousins and, now, Burdette. FSU had a tough defensive mid in Jailen Howell for four years and won 2 national titles.

Second, you need a pair of GOOD centerbacks. You will not go very far with mediocre centerbacks--and our centerback play was mediocre in the two years prior to last year. I was not really impressed by Wren French's CB play for a couple of years, or that of her partner, but it finally clicked for French last year (her third in the position) AND Lawson Renie took over the other spot and really performed well. I don't know who will replace French and partner with Renie this year--but she's not going to have any experience in the position and that's a worry--especially with Duke and UNC on the schedule early. We need someone good in the position. Why has FSU been so good for the last decade? First and foremost, but the 'Noles almost always have an excellent back four.

The third recruiting key is to land a couple of players who can put the ball in the net. Goal-scorers are harder to find than you think--but we've got one in Thomas, who is a talented poacher. Sorry to go on!
 
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#2,185
#2,185
mad4vols said:
How does Regal Soccer Stadium compare to other SEC and NCAA women's venues?
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I think we've got one of the better venues/facilities in the SEC--if only because Regal overall is well done and was built somewhat recently. But I haven't been to any other SEC soccer stadiums, so I'm just speculating. Based on what I've seen on TV, I think our stadium setup is certainly better than Missouri's, better than Florida's, better than Alabama's. Any field that sits inside a track is not good as it means the fans are farther away from the action and thus can't see as well. Most all of the fields seem fairly good, with nice grass. The field is one thing, and then your locker-room/training facilities, seating, etc. are the other component. North Carolina just built a brand new facility that I will check out when the Vols play the Heels. It looks quite nice but there isn't much space around the field itself. The field is enclosed by walls, and some of them seem so close to the field that one barely has room for a throw-in.
 
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#2,188
#2,188
I don't understand why the Vols are so slow--every year--either making or just releasing their schedule. I think most SEC teams have released their full schedule, and once again we're lagging. UT's schedule seems to come out s-l-o-w-ly every year-- piecemeal: another opponent added, and then another. And then suddenly there will be the full schedule--but always later than most other schools. Not sure why. We also tend to have fewer non-conference games than most other schools--not sure why. Most have 9; right now, we're showing 6. There will be another one or two, I think, but let's see if there are more than 8. UVA has 10 non-conference games.
 
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#2,191
#2,191
I see that the Vols have another 2023 commitment--Sarah Greiner, a forward prospect from Flowery Mound High School and the Gwinnett Soccer Club, Georgia. She had been a Florida commitment, but has switched to Tennessee, probably owing to the coaching change at Florida. Top Drawer has her as a 3-star prospect, and I saw a Prep Soccer site that has her as the 16th best 2023 prospect out of Georgia. Meh.

I saw some 2019 video of her and she struck me as a nice player, a good player, but can't say I saw a "difference maker," as Fulmer liked to say--and it's the difference makers that take you from a solid team to a very good team. We got four-difference makers in a two-year period--three last year--and went from decent to SEC champ and a 3 national seed (and should have been a 2.)

Greiner's left-footed, has above-average (but not great) speed, average size (maybe a bit on the tall side, not sure of her height), solid ball skills and seemingly good soccer IQ. She's surely a better player now than she was in 2019, so we'll see. You watch a prospect on tape and the only real thing you look for is: Could she become a standout or not, as there are a ton of D1 players who are decent or somewhat better but are not good enough to help you win a conference or national title. When Claire Rain was listed as a Vol commit, she was only a TDS 3-star--but I saw video of her playing and her pace and athleticism immediately jumped out. Taylor Huff: you watched video of her and say, "wow, she is the total package."

I think our only other '23 commit is Keaton Mitchell, a M/F out of Battleground Academy and the Tennessee Soccer Club. Rated a 2-star by TDS but she looks better than that, IMO. Saw a bit of video on her and she's impressive--solid build, plays physically and good ball skills. Looks like a prospect who, if we're lucky, might be someone who can be next Abbey Burdette--tough-minded holding mid.
 
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#2,192
#2,192
turbovol said:
I see that the Vols have another 2023 commitment--Sarah Greiner, a forward prospect from Flowery Mound High School and the Gwinnett Soccer Club, Georgia. She had been a Florida commitment, but has switched to Tennessee, probably owing to the coaching change at Florida. Top Drawer has her as a 3-star prospect, and I saw a Prep Soccer site that has her as the 16th best 2023 prospect out of Georgia. Meh.

I saw some 2019 video of her and she struck me as a nice player, a good player, but can't say I saw a "difference maker," as Fulmer liked to say--and it's the difference makers that take you from a solid team to a very good team. We got four-difference makers in a two-year period--three last year--and went from decent to SEC champ and a 3 national seed (and should have been a 2.)

Greiner's left-footed, has above-average (but not great) speed, average size (maybe a bit on the tall side, not sure of her height), solid ball skills and seemingly good soccer IQ. She's surely a better player now than she was in 2019, so we'll see. You watch a prospect on tape and the only real thing you look for is: Could she become a standout or not, as there are a ton of D1 players who are decent or somewhat better but are not good enough to help you win a conference or national title. When Claire Rain was listed as a Vol commit, she was only a TDS 3-star--but I saw video of her playing and her pace and athleticism immediately jumped out. Taylor Huff: you watched video of her and say, "wow, she is the total package."

I think our only other '23 commit is Keaton Mitchell, a M/F out of Battleground Academy and the Tennessee Soccer Club. Rated a 2-star by TDS but she looks better than that, IMO. Saw a bit of video on her and she's impressive--solid build, plays physically and good ball skills. Looks like a prospect who, if we're lucky, might be someone who can be next Abbey Burdette--tough-minded holding mid.
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Great write up.

There is another 2023 commit I believe, Kayla Barr
 
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#2,194
#2,194
turbovol said:
I see that the Vols have another 2023 commitment--Sarah Greiner, a forward prospect from Flowery Mound High School and the Gwinnett Soccer Club, Georgia. She had been a Florida commitment, but has switched to Tennessee, probably owing to the coaching change at Florida. Top Drawer has her as a 3-star prospect, and I saw a Prep Soccer site that has her as the 16th best 2023 prospect out of Georgia. Meh.

I saw some 2019 video of her and she struck me as a nice player, a good player, but can't say I saw a "difference maker," as Fulmer liked to say--and it's the difference makers that take you from a solid team to a very good team. We got four-difference makers in a two-year period--three last year--and went from decent to SEC champ and a 3 national seed (and should have been a 2.)

Greiner's left-footed, has above-average (but not great) speed, average size (maybe a bit on the tall side, not sure of her height), solid ball skills and seemingly good soccer IQ. She's surely a better player now than she was in 2019, so we'll see. You watch a prospect on tape and the only real thing you look for is: Could she become a standout or not, as there are a ton of D1 players who are decent or somewhat better but are not good enough to help you win a conference or national title. When Claire Rain was listed as a Vol commit, she was only a TDS 3-star--but I saw video of her playing and her pace and athleticism immediately jumped out. Taylor Huff: you watched video of her and say, "wow, she is the total package."

I think our only other '23 commit is Keaton Mitchell, a M/F out of Battleground Academy and the Tennessee Soccer Club. Rated a 2-star by TDS but she looks better than that, IMO. Saw a bit of video on her and she's impressive--solid build, plays physically and good ball skills. Looks like a prospect who, if we're lucky, might be someone who can be next Abbey Burdette--tough-minded holding mid.
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