Tennessee soccer displayed another strong defensive performance, shutting out the previously undefeated No. 5 Memphis Tigers in a 1-0 victory on Thursday night at Regal Stadium.
The Lady Vols (5-1-1) notified the nation again, blanking the high-powered Memphis (5-1-0) offense. This win marked the second shutout of a ranked opponent this season, following Tennessee’s 0-0 draw with the UCLA Bruins last week.
The game started as a defensive stalemate, and both teams sized each other up in the first half. As the buzzer sounded for halftime, the scoreboard read 0-0.
Tennessee’s defense neutralized the high-flying Tigers’ offense before it even became a threat, as Top Drawers’ Goalie of the Week Ally Zazzara didn’t have an attempt on the goal for the first 45 minutes of the game.
Both teams had their fair shot at a goal, as both sides put up two shots in the first 45 minutes. Tennessee contributed the only shots on goal with two.
The second half opened with a breakthrough, as Tennessee’s Mac Midgley capitalized on the best look of the game. A tap into the goal from inside the box set the Lady Vols up 1-0, breaking the stalemate in the 47th minute. This goal also put Memphis in its only deficit of the year.
“It makes it really easy when you trust your defense with everything,” Midgley said. “I’d love to get back and try and help, but they’re awesome back there.”
Tennessee’s defense had been solid all game, and Midgley rewarded their efforts, putting the Lady Vols in the driver’s seat of the game.
Tennessee never gave Memphis a chance to get back into the game, using their physicality on defense to force multiple bad shots for the Tigers.
The Tigers had a better second half, putting up seven more shots, two of which were on target. However, it wasn’t enough, as the game ended 1-0 with the Lady Vols on top.
Tennessee knew what challenge they were in for in an opponent like Memphis.
“We knew it was going to be a fight, we just said everything we could do to get our bodies in front of things,” Leah Klurman said. “It takes the whole team to defend, and I think we did a collective great job for tonight.”
Tennessee did a great job of getting bodies in front of balls and blocking passing and shooting lanes. Blocks were a crucial part of the win, with the Lady Vols ending a handful of the Tigers’ possessions in the box.
The Lady Vols also stopped another Memphis streak, ending their nation-leading, 10-game win streak at Regal Stadium.
“They can score in a lot of different ways, so we have to be prepared for that,” head coach Joe Kirt said. “Our backs continue to be tremendous back there, and there were not a lot of good looks for Memphis.”
Zazzara finished the night with two saves, both of which came in the second half. This shutout of the Tigers extends her streak to six straight games with a clean sheet.
