Heading into this weekend’s competition, the Lady Vol soccer team was looking to find its missing-in-action offense.
After victories over No. 5 Florida and South Carolina, it’s safe to say Tennessee found it.
The Lady Volunteers again befuddled the Gators. The 2-1 victory over Florida, combined with last year’s win in the SEC tournament final, marked the first time any conference team has beaten UF two straight times.
The Gators were also the highest ranked team Tennessee has ever beaten, surpassing the 2-1 overtime win over the No. Gators in 2001.
UT avoided a letdown against South Carolina Sunday, emerging with a hard-fought, 3-2 victory over the Gamecocks. The win pushed Tennessee’s record to 9-4 overall and 3-1 in SEC play.
The Lady Vols started out the scoring early, scoring on a penalty kick at the 17-minute mark. Freshman midfielder Ali Christoph knocked a shot past South Carolina goalkeeper Elise Matthews to put Tennessee ahead, 1-0.
The next score didn’t come until nearly 50 minutes later.
Junior defender Keeley Dowling picked up her sixth goal of the year, scoring a header off a corner kick from Christoph at the 62:18 mark.
South Carolina struck back quickly, notching a goal at the 62:38 mark. Freshman midfielder Jessi Swaim scored on a wide-open goal to pull the Gamecocks within one at 2-1.
The Gamecocks equalized the scoring at two at the 83:17 mark. Freshman forward M.A. Foster knocked in a score directly in front of the goal off an assist from junior defender Sarah Lentz.
Tennessee finished off the scoring less than two minutes later, though.
Junior midfielder Sue Flamini knocked in a shot to the upper right corner of the goal at the 85:03 mark. The shot, off assists from Dowling and Christoph, marked Flamini’s third match-winner of the season and gave UT a 3-2 victory.
The win left head coach Angela Kelly pleased but still looking for improvement.
“I think every team in this conference can present a challenge,” Kelly said. “On any given day, any team can win. After an emotional win on Friday, we found a way to win today.
“It wasn’t pretty, but it was a win.”
Kelly noted the continued strong play of Christoph, who notched a goal and two assists on the afternoon.
“I think Ali gave us a tremendous performance again today,” Kelly said of Christoph, who was named SEC Offensive Player of the Week Monday. “She continues to play well in each game. Today she was all over the field, helping us in every area.”
Christoph said Tennessee’s gutsy match against the Gamecocks said a lot about her team.
“We came out today to prove that Friday’s win over Florida wasn’t just a fluke,” Christoph said. “We got two early goals, but we shouldn’t have let them come back.
“Overall, though, we were happy with the game.”
Dowling agreed, saying that preventing teams from striking back is now the team’s goal.
“I think coming away with two wins was good,” Dowling said. ‘It was a learning experience for us. Top teams put teams away earlier. That’s our focus for the rest of the season.”
The rest of the season starts with this weekend’s SEC road trip to Arkansas and LSU. The Tigers have struggled in SEC play (1-3), despite accumulating a 8-4-1 overall record.
The Razorbacks (6-5-1) have fared better in SEC play, picking up two early victories in conference action (2-2).
Kelly said she thinks this weekend’s competition will be a continuation of the Lady Vols’ stiff schedule.
“I’m looking for Arkansas and LSU to provide us some tough competition,” Kelly said. “You are never going to have an easy game in this conference on the road.”
