Official 2015 Soccer Thread

#76
#76
If you missed last night's win over Georgia, check out the highlights now!
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6d47kt1QHsE[/youtube]
 
#77
#77
Watched a good part of the florida-kentucky game. Kentucky, which has a solid but not terribly good team, it would appear--stole a point from the gators in the 1-1 tie. Florida totally dominated the game--had 24 shots, 14 on goal, had a goal called back (questionably), had numerous other good chances to score but couldn't. Kentucky, meanwhile, had 4 shots on goal, one of which went in the florida net on a deflection. Soccer is a funny game.

Florida has a good athlete at every position, and they are talented offensively--good possession team, technical, have a couple of very good defenders in Westphal and Falknor, both very confident with the ball--and of course S.Jordan up front who, in 2.5 years has scored an incredible 54 goals. Hard to believe. She score 20-something goals as a freshman, 19 last year and I think has 15 this year. We are familiar with her. Tough challenge; we will have to take them out of their game and trip to nip a goal or two. We beat them in last year's SEC tourney (penalty kicks after a tie), so we should have some confidence. I hope Pensky goes back to four midfielders for this game; if he doesn't, we will be on our heels and playing defense all night--and that's not a good thing. We need to assert ourselves in the middle of the field to be competitive in this game.

Florida has 32 players on its roster (compared to our 28)! Seems a bit of roster overload; the gator coach brought in 15 freshman this year--good grief.
 
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#78
#78
TENNESSEE VS. #12 FLORIDA​
The Vols will look to continue their rise up the SEC standings as they welcome the 12th ranked Gators to Regal Soccer Stadium.
View attachment 101084​

The Tennessee women’s soccer team will look to build off a 1-0 win over Georgia its last time out as No. 12 Florida visits Regal Soccer Stadium on Friday at 7 p.m. ET.
Friday night’s contest will air live on SEC Network + and will feature Roger Hoover handling play-by-play duties while Tennessee soccer alum Tori Beeler Watson serves as the analyst.

The Volunteers improved to 6-1-5 overall and earned their second victory in conference play last Friday with a 1-0 victory over Georgia. They currently sit in sixth place in the SEC, one spot above Florida (8-3-1, 2-2-1), with a 2-1-2 record and eight points. The Vols entered this week only one point behind Texas A&M and Kentucky, who are tied for fourth place in the conference.

In their victory over the Bulldogs last Friday, the Vols posted their conference-leading ninth shutout of the season, which also ranks tied for fourth in the nation. Redshirt senior goalkeeper Julie Eckel leads the league with eight shutouts and also leads the SEC in goals against average (0.39) and save percentage (.911). The Cordova, Tenn., native needs only one more shutout the break the Tennessee all-time record for career shutouts held by Vanessa Phillips-Bosshart, who recorded 32 from 2002-05.

Junior forward Amy Neal scored the only goal of the game in the win over Georgia and is now tied for the team lead with four goals. She also leads the Vols with two game-winners.

The Big Orange are 8-15-3 all-time against Florida, but are 5-3-1 at home against their SEC rivals. In the last meeting between the two sides, the Vols prevailed over the eighth-ranked Gators in penalty kicks to advance to the semifinals of last year’s SEC Tournament.

Fans are encouraged to arrive early as the first 500 fans through the gates will receive a free Tennessee soccer scarf. Friday is also Dollar Night with hot dogs and drinks on sale for just $1 each.

Following Friday’s game, the Vols travel to Tuscaloosa to square off against Alabama on Sunday at 6 p.m. ET.
 
#81
#81
Kupritz feeling at home in Knoxville​
The Daily Beacon

View attachment 101140​

Not many players would trade palm trees for snowy winters in Knoxville, but for Ariel Kupritz, Knoxville is the one place she truly feels at home.
The Maryville, Tennessee native felt that the decision to come back home after spending one year at the University of Miami wasn’t a hard choice.
“Considering I have family here, I have support and I know the area and the campus, that was honestly an easy transition. It was made easier by the players and the coaches here,” Kupritz said. “I knew I wasn’t going to stay at Miami, and I assessed my options. I met with Brian (Pensky), and we met for four hours, and he sold me.”
Kupritz’s soccer journey began at the age of six, when her father pushed her to play. Her father, Garth Kupritz, was a four-year starter at San Diego State University between 1982 and 1985. Garth played with many future United States World Cup team members, while attending San Diego State, including Cle Kooiman, Kevin Crowne and Chris Sullivan.
Her father’s passion and love for the sport helped boost Kupritz’s attitude to strive to succeed. She played on many boys teams between the ages of six and 15, fighting and learning to have a tough, physical attitude along the way. Finally, she entered high school at Maryville and played her freshman and sophomore years before multiple surgeries sidelined her for two years.
Although this would prove devastating to most athletes, Kupritz bounced back strong, earning herself the No. 78 spot on TopDrawerSoccer’s nationwide list. The former Maryville Rebel had an impressive résumé to present to interested colleges — she scored 66 goals in the two seasons she played in high school.
Kupritz admitted she wanted to play for an ACC school in the beginning, and she decided on Miami on the plane ride back home from Florida.
“Unfortunately, after that first spring when I graduated early and went down, the coach that I committed to got fired,” Kupritz explained. “Then, when they brought in the new coach, we just didn’t mix. It was the best transition for me to come home.”
Kupritz didn’t waste any time on coming back to Knoxville, but there would be a delay. Kupritz tore her ACL in the spring of 2014, and although she was cleared to play in Oct. 2014, the coaching staff decided to redshirt her.
Kupritz’s role on the team is a Manu Ginobili-like setup — a player talented enough to start but who can also provide multiple valuable minutes off the bench.
Head coach Brian Pensky is a huge fan of Kupritz’s abilities and attitude on the field.
“I don’t think Ariel has had a day in training or a game where she has not shown up mentally ready to die for it,” Pensky said. “Ariel shows up every single day ready to compete … We know that every time we step on a practice field or a game, Ariel is going to be ready to fight.”
Kupritz is enjoying a good amount of success this year. The redshirt sophomore has netted two goals, both of which were in conference play, Arkansas and Auburn, and were the lone goals for her team in each game.
Staying healthy is Kupritz’s main goal after college. However, she does admit it would be a dream to play professionally or go overseas to play.
Whatever the case, Ariel Kupritz’s attitude and fight can’t be beaten on the field of play.
“My whole story is pretty much just battling back,” Kupritz said. “I’ve never been given anything. I’ve always had to work for everything and just truly give it all my all and my passion. Slowly but surely, things start to change.”
 
#84
#84
Good article on Kupritz--thanks. The young woman has some talent and plays hard and physical all the time, which is a good thing. And she'll get better, like everybody on this fairly young team.
 
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#85
#85
I am surprised that Pensky is playing a 4-3-3 formation against a talented florida team that itself is playing a 3-5-2, meaning florida will have 5 midfielders against 3 for UT, and the Vol midfield has not exactly been a strength this year. I write this as the game is about to begin. Let's see how this formation matchup plays out....
 
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#86
#86
armchair said:
I am surprised that Pensky is playing a 4-3-3 formation against a talented florida team that itself is playing a 3-5-2, meaning florida will have 5 midfielders against 3 for UT, and the Vol midfield has not exactly been a strength this year. I write this as the game is about to begin. Let's see how this formation matchup plays out....
Click to expand...

Florida 2 Tennessee 1 after the first 1/2
What did you think?
 
#87
#87
VOLS CAN'T HANG ON AGAINST #12 FLORIDA, FALL 2-1
Tennessee couldn't hang on to a 1-0 lead in the first half, dropping its second game of the year on Friday night against No. 12 Florida.
View attachment 101220​
The Tennessee women's soccer team jumped out to a first-half lead but couldn't hold on against No. 12 Florida's high-powered offense, falling 2-1 on a rainy Friday night at Regal Soccer Stadium.
After a nearly two hour rain delay postponed the start of the game, the Vols (6-2-5, 2-2-2 SEC) weathered an early wave of shots from the Gators and then opened the scoring in the 22nd minute when Meghan Flynn beat Kaylan Marckese for her first-career goal. Mackenzie Gouner's pass sprung Flynn free in the box and she calmly finished with a perfect strike into the top portion of the net from about 12 yards out.

The high-scoring Gators (9-3-1, 3-2-1 SEC) responded with the equalizer in the 34th minute when Brooke Sharp pounced on a loose ball in the box and beat Julie Eckel from about six yards out. A little over eight minutes later, Florida took a 2-1 lead on a low strike from Liz Slattery that eluded a diving Eckel and found the bottom right corner of the net.

Tatum Wagner nearly tied the game as the halftime buzzer sounded, sending a low shot just wide of the left post. The Volunteers tallied six shots before the break, led by Susan Ferguson, who had two.

Both teams traded chances throughout the second half with Tennessee applying a lot of pressure towards the end of the game. The Vols posted four shots in the final 20 minutes of the second half, but couldn't find a way to beat Marckese for the equalizer.

Eckel made seven saves on a night where she tied Ellen Dean for the most matches started by a goalkeeper in program history with 74. Freshman Rylie O'Keefe led the Vols with four shots, but Tennessee was outshot by Florida, 19-12, on the night.

The Vols now head to Tuscaloosa on Sunday to take on Alabama at 6 p.m. ET. The game will be streamed live on SEC Network +/WatchESPN.
 
#88
#88
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rn8HRZqqq3w[/youtube]
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71LhGTVFfVQ[/youtube]
 
#89
#89
Thought we played hard but we don't play well enough yet to beat really good teams. Must get much better at possessing the ball out of the back--good teams can do it, it was the first thing the Fla. coach mentioned in praising her team's performance. Our back four are very diligent but not good enough on or with the ball. Offensively, we have the same problem--we aren't polished enough. We have to be a better possession team, IMO: that is how you get your midfielders playing in your opponents end and not deep in your own end and start creating more quality chances in front of your opponents goal.

There were times last night when florida's last two defenders were 10 yards or more inside our half of the field--meaning their entire team was pressing on our defense and our goal. And there were times when our entire team was in our defensive third. That is what happens against a really good possession team--your are chasing and falling back all night. We tried to counterattack with our speedy forwards, which was a sound strategy, but florida's defenders are solid and we couldn't pull it off.

Next three games are very important.
 
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#90
#90
If you missed last night's game vs. Florida, watch the highlights here:
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHdBD-VSkZc[/youtube]
 
#91
#91
TENNESSEE AT ALABAMA
Tennessee will look to get back in the win column after falling to No. 12 Florida on Friday night.
View attachment 101234​
The Volunteers wrap up the weekend Sunday evening on the road against Alabama at 6 p.m. ET in a game that can be seen on SEC Network +/WatchESPN.
Tennessee (6-2-5, 2-2-2 SEC) dropped a close contest to No. 12 Florida, 2-1, on Friday night and will look to bounce back against the Crimson Tide. Freshman Meghan Flynn put the Vols on top in the 22nd minute with her first-career goal, but UT couldn’t hold on against the Gators’ high-powered offense.

Alabama (4-8-2, 1-5 SEC) is coming off its fourth straight loss after falling to No. 17 Texas A&M, 4-0, on Friday night in College Station, Texas. The Tide are led by junior midfielder Celia Jimenez Delgado, who ranks first on the team with four goals and nine points.

The Vols are 11-5-1 all-time against the Crimson Tide, including a 4-4 record in Tuscaloosa. UT dropped last season’s regular-season contest in double overtime but got revenge in the SEC Tournament, earning a come-from-behind 3-2 win in the first round.

The Volunteers have a week off before making a trip to Columbia, Mo., to take on the Missouri Tigers on Sunday, Oct. 18. That game can be seen live on ESPNU at 2 p.m. ET.
 
#93
#93
This is a must-win game for the Vols, as are, pretty much, the three after this one if we want to get into the NCAA tourney. At the least, we probably have to win three of the next four. Pensky needs to improve the attack. We are not creating enough quality chances and not scoring enough goals. We are averaging /under 1 goal/ a game in SEC play--6 conference games, 5 goals. Time to put the ball in the back of the net!
 
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#94
#94
armchair said:
this is a must-win game for the vols, as are, pretty much, the three after this one if we want to get into the ncaa tourney. At the least, we probably have to win three of the next four. Pensky needs to improve the attack. We are not creating enough quality chances and not scoring enough goals. We are averaging /under 1 goal/ a game in sec play--6 conference games, 5 goals. Time to put the ball in the back of the net!
Click to expand...

beat bama!
 
#97
#97
GOALLL! Anna McClung scores her 5th of the year to give the Vols a 2-0 cushion!
 
#98
#98
Alabama scores off a lose ball in the box with 14 minutes left to make it Tennessee 2 Alabama 1.
 
#99
#99
GOAL BY UT ANNA BIALCZAK, ASSIST BY EMILY MORROW, GOAL NUMBER 3 FOR SEASON.
Tennessee 3
Alabama 1
5 minutes left.
 
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