After putting on a late-game show against Duke in last Friday’s 4-3 overtime victory, the Tennessee soccer team takes its act across the country this weekend.
The eighth-ranked Lady Vols (1-0) play at No. 15 Washington at 10 p.m. ET tonight before traveling to unranked Washington State for a 3 p.m. Sunday afternoon contest.
“I think that we set a good foundation for the season with the win,” UT coach Angela Kelly said following the Duke victory. “We were able to see the things we need to fix and some of those, we fixed in the course of the second half and overtime.”
Tennessee’s first opponent of the road trip had an opening weekend filled with excitement that rivaled the Lady Vols’ overtime win. As hosts of the Husky/Nike Invitational championship, the then-unranked Huskies (2-0) upset No. 9 Penn State in a 2-1 victory on Friday before knocking off No. 18 Ohio State on Sunday.
The results were surprising for the Huskies, who have a roster loaded with underclassmen, including nine freshmen.
“We have a very top-loaded and bottom-loaded team,” Washington coach Lesle Gallimore said. “This year is going to be a tale of how well youth and experience can mix and how quickly.”
Despite the inexperience that comes with having seven sophomores and nine rookies, Gallimore is impressed by the skills her team brings to the field.
“Talent-wise, we could be as good as any team we’ve had,” Gallimore said.
The Huskies are led by senior forward Tina Frimpong, who was named as the co-Pac-10 Player of the Year in 2003. Frimpong scored 13 goals last season, leaving her seven shy of tying the Washington career goal record.
The midfield is resituating following the loss of three starters, including senior Clare Rustad. Rustad moved from the midfield to the defense heading into the season after playing at defender for the Canadian National Team.
Regardless of who the opponent may be, Gallimore thinks her team is prepared.
“We just want to play the Washington way,” Gallimore said, “which is to forget all about the rankings and just play the game.”
After playing at Washington on Friday, the Lady Vols will take on unranked Washington State (1-1) in Puyallup on Sunday. The game marks UT senior forward Lyndsey Patterson’s homecoming as she attended Puyallup High School.
The Cougars are coming off an opening weekend at the Montana Nike Cup that had mixed success. After taking a 2-0 victory over Denver on Friday, the team suffered a 2-1 OT loss to Montana on Sunday.
“We were able to see the potential of our team,” second-year Washington State coach Matt Potter said. “We saw some areas that we need to work on if we are to reach our goals.”
Finding a more balanced offense might be point one on the improvement list for Potter. In the win over Denver, junior forward Alix Rustrum scored both goals for WSU, while senior Cailan McCutchan knocked in the lone goal in Sunday’s contest.
Defensively, Washington State returns its leader from last season – senior goalkeeper Katie Hultin. Hultin was an honorable mention Pac-10 selection last season.
To counter both teams, Tennessee will rely on a strong defense, anchored by senior defender Keeley Dowling. Dowling’s efforts last weekend, including the game-winner, garnered her SEC Defensive Player of the Week honors this week.
Joining her is freshman defender Erica Griffin, whose strong effort defensively and two assists on offense helped UT to its 4-3 victory.
Patterson, who knocked in two goals in the opening game, bolsters the Lady Vol offense. She’s joined by sophomore Ali Christoph and senior Kayla Lockaby.
Their coach said this weekend’s games will be about improvement.
“You learn a little from each game you play,” Kelly said. “We want to take each lesson and get better each game.”
