Tennessee soccer’s five-match win streak came to an end late Thursday, but it did not come with a mark in the loss column.
After 90 minutes of soccer, the Lady Vols and Oklahoma Sooners walked away without a goal scored, ending in a 0-0 final.
With Tennessee staying in the top five rankings in the country, the Lady Vols rolled on steadily through the whole season, handling SEC play with poise. Playing away at Oklahoma was no exception. It goes without saying that conference play for these teams is always a challenge, and Tennessee soccer has shown its comfort level in the defense-heavy games, which includes this tie with the Sooners.
Along with the heightened defense, this game also saw an active attacking mentality, with the Lady Vols taking eight shots throughout the game, four of them coming from Reese Mattern. Working out the ball at the front right of Tennessee’s formation, Mattern also had help from Mac Midgley and Anaiyah Robinson, who had two shots each.
There was also a lot of activity from the bench, with Bella Smith delivering two shots, and Skylar Miller and Alivia Stott each delivering a shot as well. Goalkeeper Cayden Norris also put up a productive game, staying fairly busy in the goal and earning three saves against an aggressive Oklahoma offense.
This tie comes after the Lady Vols walked away with a visiting win against Ole Miss, finishing 4-1. The win over the Rebels marked their best performance of the season against a conference opponent. Now, with their draw in Norman against the Sooners, Tennessee’s record is currently 11-1-2, with a conference record of 5-1-1.
Coming up next for the Lady Vols, the team travels back home to Knoxville to face the Florida Gators on Oct. 16. This will be the second-to-last regular-season game at home in Regal Stadium, steadily bringing in the postseason. Tennessee currently has an eight-game win streak in matchups with the Gators, winning the last one away in Gainesville 1-0.