The Tennessee women’s soccer team has not shied away from scheduling high-profile opponents this season, already having played a grueling non-conference schedule which included foes such as Wisconsin, BYU and national title contender, Virginia.
Couple this non-conference schedule with their gauntlet of highly-ranked conference opponents, and the Lady Vols have one of the toughest schedules in the nation.
The Lady Volunteers (6-5, 1-2 SEC) have yet to reap benefits from this tough 2014 schedule, however, as they have not secured a win over a ranked opponent.
All that could change, though, when the Lady Vols travel to Athens, Georgia, this weekend to face the No. 20 Georgia Bulldogs (7-2-1, 2-1-1).
Tennessee will be trying to get back to .500 in SEC play and will also be looking to end its six-game losing streak against ranked opponents dating back to last year.
It is also an opportunity for the Lady Vols to get a signature win for the 2014 season.
“We need a big win, there is no question about it,” Tennessee women’s head soccer coach Brian Pensky said. “We have another opportunity Friday night at Georgia. We are excited for the opportunity and thankful for it.”
The Bulldogs are brimming with confidence thanks to their 1-0 road victory over No. 13 South Carolina last Sunday.
But according to Pensky, Georgia’s big win over the Gamecocks was just the result his team wanted.
“We were pulling for Georgia last weekend, no disrespect to South Carolina,” Pensky said. “But we were hoping they would knock South Carolina off. It would improve their ranking and RPI, and we would have the opportunity to go down there and potentially knock them off.”
In order to knock Georgia off, Tennessee will have to keep an eye on Bulldogs midfielder Gabby Seiler.
Despite only being a sophomore, Seiler has already emerged as one of the SEC’s biggest stars. She is third in the SEC in points with 18 and has contributed on 13 of Georgia’s 22 goals – five goals and eight assists.
UT freshman midfielder Carlyn Baldwin recognizes the challenge Seiler presents to the Tennessee midfield.
“It will be high pressure for sure,” Baldwin said. “We have been working a lot in training just facing that pressure, so I am sure we will play through it. We have really good technical players and working on the tactics so I think we will be fine.”
Tennessee sophomore forward Amy Neal insists her team just needs to focus on playing its style of soccer in order to upset the Bulldogs.
“They are going to give us a lot of pressure,” Neal said, “so we need to keep the ball, not panic and just play Tennessee soccer.”
The Lady Vols’ match against the Bulldogs inside the Turner Soccer Complex will start at 7 p.m. EST Friday. UT will also face off against Auburn on the road Sunday at 3 p.m.
