Lady Vols Soccer ⚽️ Tennessee @ Virginia Tech 11/15 Friday 7PM Blacksburg VA ⚽️ NCAA TOURNAMENT First Round

#4,829
#4,829
Vols better start playing faster and working on getting the ball out of our back with more alacrity as Arkansas is going to press us in our first SEC match in another week or so. We have a tendency to be ponderous and slow at times--and backpass too much. Our back four plus Washington is not good enough to futz around against good pressing teams. Renie plays rather slow. Brown and Hennessey are a bit predictable and don't really get the ball up the field themselves. I think we'd be smart to play a four-man midfield and get Stayart and Agresti in the middle and get G. Washington out. We will not beat anybody decent with the defensive mid starter we now have, and I fear Kirt will learn that the hard way. As I write Arkansas and UNC are tied 1-1 late in the first half--and meantime, we will next play mighty Radford. I don't think we are athletic enough, as a team, or play fast enough or well enough, to beat Arkansas. Hope I'm wrong.

Runyon has loads of potential but she needs to move the ball and stop trying to dribble the ball through 2 defenders every time she gets it. You can do that in high school and maybe club soccer--but not at this level. Get rid of the ball.
 
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#4,830
#4,830
Arkansas started well against UNC, took a 1-0 lead, but the Heels came on strong from late in the first half through the 2nd half. UNC scored on an excellent shot from distance late in the first half to equalize, then scored on another beauty of a shot from distance with about 20' minutes to go to take a 2-1 lead, and then with Arkansas sending everybody forward in an effort to get the tying goal, UNC broke on the counter and scored again to seal a 3-1 win. UNC really took control of the game in the 2nd half, and Arkansas kind of faded. Arkansas is still playing like it always has under Hale--very direct. They get the ball in the midfield and then often shoot a long pass forward, trying to connect with one of their speedy forwards. They like to get a lot of people forward and put balls into the box--that's always been their MO. Not pretty--but they've won a lot of games with their athleticism and their direct style of play. The hogs are not big on possessing the ball, just athletic, and they try to put a lot of pressure on your defenders. Our back four is not very speedy, and that could be a problem. Let's hope not.
 
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#4,832
#4,832
turbovol said:
Arkansas started well against UNC, took a 1-0 lead, but the Heels came on strong from late in the first half through the 2nd half. UNC scored on an excellent shot from distance late in the first half to equalize, then scored on another beauty of a shot from distance with about 20' minutes to go to take a 2-1 lead, and then with Arkansas sending everybody forward in an effort to get the tying goal, UNC broke on the counter and scored again to seal a 3-1 win. UNC really took control of the game in the 2nd half, and Arkansas kind of faded. Arkansas is still playing like it always has under Hale--very direct. They get the ball in the midfield and then often shoot a long pass forward, trying to connect with one of their speedy forwards. They like to get a lot of people forward and put balls into the box--that's always been their MO. Not pretty--but they've won a lot of games with their athleticism and their direct style of play. The hogs are not big on possessing the ball, just athletic, and they try to put a lot of pressure on your defenders. Our back four is not very speedy, and that could be a problem. Let's hope not.
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Watched the last 20 minutes of that game. They will eat our back line alive and goalies can kick the ball 3/4 down the field. Who knew such things were possible. The kick to the side and slow attack up field does not bode well for us. It could get ugly real quick.
 
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#4,837
#4,837
Good lord, I thought about Barr today--wondered if she might be ready for some playing time and whether she could perhaps
help us at outside back with her pace and athleticism, though her natural position is forward. She had some very impressive highlight videos--fast, tenacious. And so here she is on the podcast and we learn that she's yet another player who's out for the season with an ACL--as is freshman midfielder Emma Duval. Apparently, they both got hurt playing club ball in the summer. That makes at least 4 players who are out with ACL's--including Katz and Chatterton, and who knows what's going on with Dipasupil.

The injuries are hurting us, and ACL tears can ruin careers, I'm sorry to say--especially if you have more than one. Players often simply can't run as well as they once could after one or two ligament repairs. We had a All-America quality player named Eric Gilroy on that outstanding 2018 team---which included Bunny Shaw, Katie Cousins, Anna Bialczak, Shae Yanez, Danielle Marcano, Maya Neal---who suffered 2 ACL tears and it ruined her potential pro career. She was a starter on the U.S. U20 National team at forward. Super player, great competitor. I think she suffered her first knee injury just before starting at UT, sat out her freshman season rehabbing it, and then suffered a second knee blowouot in a big, late-season win over Texas A&M, in College Station. I can still see it. She was chasing the ball through the box, got to it and tried to make an awkward almost 360-degree turn with her body, and down she went, the ACL torn again--and she lost the pace that was one of her chief qualities. Hated it for her. That 2018 team was our most talented team ever.

I'm quite sure Nelson, who's had two knee surgeries, has lost the speed that she had in high-school; she was fast, and just isn't that fast anymore. In any case, here's hoping that all heal well and come back stronger and better than ever.
 
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#4,847
#4,847

MATCH CENTRAL: Tennessee vs. Radford​


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Tennessee will be back in Regal Stadium on Thursday night, hosting Radford in a 7 p.m. ET contest.

UT (3-1-1) is coming off a 2-2 draw against Indiana at home last Thursday. The Lady Vols erased a two-point first-half deficit with goals from sophomore Kameron Simmonds and redshirt-senior Jaida Thomas.

Radford (3-2-1) enters the match on the heels of a commanding 5-0 win over Hampton at home on Sunday.

Admission is free for all preseason and regular-season soccer matches. For fans planning to attend, note that Tennessee's clear bag policy will be in effect again this season.

GAME PROMOTIONS:

  • $1 Hot Dog Night
  • Smokey's Spirit Squad Night
  • Food Trucks: Smith's Endzone BBQ & Irvey's Ice Cream
  • Rocky Top Rowdies shirts (first 300 students)
VS THE HIGHLANDERS: This will mark the sixth meeting between UT and Radford, with Tennessee owning a 4-0-1 advantage in the series. The teams last met on Sept. 20, 2000.

SCOUTING RU: Following a 2022 Big South Championship, the Highlanders were picked to finish first in the conference again this season as voted on by the league's coaches. The 2022 squad posted an overall record of 12-4-4 and a conference mark of 6-2-1. Midfielders Alexeis Kirnos, Lilly Short and Amy Swain earned Big South Preseason All-Conference honors, as did defender Helena Willson who was named Big South Preseason Defensive Player of the Year.

TRACKING THOMAS: Scoring her first goal of the season against the Hoosiers, Thomas moved her career goals scored to 39, pulling within four of tying Kylee Rossi at No. 1 in program history.

SIMMONDS BY THE NUMBERS: With a goal against IU, Simmonds moved her goal count to a team-leading five on the season. She has scored those five goals on just 19 shots, and she currently ties for 15th among all NCAA D-1 players for goals per game. She is second in the SEC in total goals (5), goals per game (1.00), and points (10), trailing only Jordyn Rhodes of Kentucky.

CREATING CHANCES: The Lady Vols have taken 53 corner kicks on the season while limiting opponents to just 13. They currently rank second nationally with 10.4 corner kicks per game.

EVERYONE IS DANGEROUS: UT's 13 goals thus far have been scored by eight different players. Freshmen Sarah Greiner, Kate Runyon and Keaton Mitchell, sophomore Kameron Simmonds (5), junior Jordan Fusco, redshirt-seniors Maria Nelson and Jaida Thomas, and graduate Sizzy Lawton have all found the back of the net for the Big Orange. An own goal by ETSU rounds out the total.

FRESHMEN FINDING THEIR GROOVE: In the Lady Vols' first two contests, all four of UT's active freshmen recorded a goal or assist. Forwards Kate Runyon and Sarah Greiner each logged goals, and defender Linette Hofmann tallied an assist in the season opener against Cal, while midfielder Keaton Mitchell put her name on the scorecard with a goal at Lipscomb.

NEW FACES: Tennessee added 10 newcomers in its 2023 signing class. All 10 are versatile field players with six enrolling as freshmen and four arriving as transfers with multiple years of collegiate experience.

BACK AGAIN: The Lady Vols return five starters and 20 letterwinners from the 2022 team that clinched an SEC East Division title for the third straight season.

PLAYERS TO WATCH: Redshirt senior Jaida Thomas, senior Lawson Renie, juniors Sheridan Michel and Jordan Fusco, and sophomore Kameron Simmonds were all named to the SEC Preseason Watch List.

UP NEXT: Tennessee will close out its non-conference slate on the road, traveling to Florida Atlantic for a 1 p.m. ET matchup on Sunday.
 
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