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

#761
#761
lvocd said:
I don’t know why I was so stunned that Tennessee could shut Arky out to win the championship today. They’ve been playing like they knew they were going to win it instead of playing like they hoped they would.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!! 🧡⚽️
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Yes I figured it would be a close match not a blowout. But I'll take it! :cool:
 
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#766
#766
Worse score wise(1st 3 goal loss) defeat of the season for Arkansas, and only the 2nd time Arkansas has been held scoreless. Impressive win! Has to be tough for Arkansas in the final for 5 or 6 straight years and lose all of them.
 
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#767
#767
No. 10 Tennessee Wins SEC Championship With 3-0 Win Over No. 5 Arkansas

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ORANGE BEACH, Ala. – No. 10 Tennessee claimed an SEC Championship on Sunday, defeating No. 5 Arkansas, 3-0.

The win over the top-seeded Razorbacks gave the Big Orange its fifth overall SEC Tournament title and first since 2008.

Seniors Mackenzie George, Wrenne French and Abbey Burdette and redshirt-sophomore Jaida Thomas were named to the SEC All-Tournament Team. Burdette took MVP honors.

With the win, UT got its first victory over a Top-5 opponent since taking down No. 5 Texas A&M in 2018 and tied the program record for single-season wins at 18.

"This was a storybook ending to the SEC season for this group. What a complete performance. Our kids came to win, simple as that," said Tennessee head coach Brian Pensky. "I could talk forever about all of the individual performances today. There were so many of them. However, the strength of this group has consistently been in our numbers - everyone playing their role, doing their part. Our bench energy was phenomenal today, continuously inspiring the kids on the field. And that was a big deal, especially in the first 20 minutes or so of that second half. So, it was just a total collective effort."

French, Thomas and senior Hannah Tillett all found the net for the Vols. In goal, junior Lindsey Romig recorded four saves in the shutout.

Tennessee fended off a couple of Arkansas set pieces in the opening minutes before going on the offensive. French had the first shot on goal of the game, getting a head on a corner but knocking it directly at Hannah Warner who made the save.

The Razorbacks countered on the other end, bouncing the ball around inside the six-yard box, but Burdette came up with a diving save on Arkansas' first look, and UA's second attempt went wide.

The game remained a back-and-forth affair through the middle of the half, with Arkansas outshooting the Vols 5-4, but both teams only managing one shot on goal by the 25-minute mark.

Jordan Fusco got another opportunity for UT 27 minutes in, sending a header high off a Vols corner kick, and Hannah Zaluskiput a free kick of frame with 8:50 remaining in the half, forcing the Arkansas keeper into a dive to knock it over the goal, but the score remained knotted at zero.

A corner kick in the 43rd minute proved to be the opportunity Tennessee needed, as French won a header on top of the six-yard box and placed it in the corner of the net.

Brooke Wilson nearly added a second before the end of the half, getting behind the Razorback defense and putting a head on the end of a serve by Lawson Renie, but the shot sailed high, and UT went into the break up 1-0.

Arkansas came out of the break with pressure, getting off two shots on goal from inside the box in the 50th minute, but Romig was there to come up with two big saves to defend the lead.

A minute later, Thomas scored her fifth goal of the tournament, redirecting a serve from Claire Rain to split two defenders and beat the keeper from six yards out.

Tillett made it 3-0 in the 68th minute, blasting one in from 15 yards out off an assist from Thomas.

Bryana Hunter got a good look for UA with eight minutes to play, turning around to fire one from 16 yards out, but the shot flew high, and Tennessee rode out the clock to claim the SEC Tournament title.

UP NEXT: Tennessee will return home to await the results of the of the NCAA DI Women's Soccer Selection show at 4:30 p.m. ET on Monday.

DOMINANT FASHION: The 3-0 win over Arkansas was the most dominant performance UT has posted in an SEC Championship game. All of UT's prior SEC title game matches were decided by one point or in penalty kicks.

SHUTOUTS STACKING UP: The win marked the Vols' 11th shutout of the season, bringing the team within one of tying the program record of 12.
 
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#769
#769
VolBalls33 said:
17 and 2, only game we lost by more than 1 goal was Arkansas. And UT has scored a goal in all 19 games!! Wonder if UT gets a national seed, even with a loss to top 5 Arkansas in the final. GLV!!
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Hey, wonder if Arkansas gets a National seed even with a loss to Tennessee in the final. There, fixed your post. 😀
 
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#772
#772
mad4vols said:
Do you think that should have been a red?
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Once she gave a yellow, which was obviously the floor for a ref's response, she probably felt locked in, in the absence of something establishing a clear intent to injure on the video. Had she gone straight red at first, I doubt there would have been a lot of debate about that, as it would have happened in the flow of the match. Once she chose yellow and then stopped to look, I think changing her mind became more of a challenge. From what I saw, it looked like Ms. Thomas had clearly frustrated the Arkansas player and Jaida actually seemed to enjoy the frustrated response.
 
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#773
#773
kregman said:
Well I would have given the MVP to Thomas but that is a first world soccer problem. We had a number that could have won it.
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She was certainly in the group of who should have been considered, and I bet she was. I was more impressed by her defensive effort in the final than by her goal. I personally really liked the choice of Burdette for all she did that set the table for the victory.
 
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#775
#775
Lurker said:
She was certainly in the group of who should have been considered, and I bet she was. I was more impressed by her defensive effort in the final than by her goal. I personally really liked the choice of Burdette for all she did that set the table for the victory.
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No doubt she does a lot of the dirty work.
 
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