University of Tennessee Athletics
LADY VOL DIARIES - ALI CHRISTOPH
September 15, 2003 | Soccer
Sept. 15, 2003
As the first commitment of the 2003 freshman class for Head Coach Angela Kelly's Lady Volunteer soccer squad, Ali Christoph got things rolling for her fellow rookies before she even arrived on campus. With that in mind, it should come as no surprise that she became the first member of her rookie class to notch a goal, connecting on a pass from senior Rhian Wilkinson to open up the scoring in Tennessee's 5-2 triumph over UNLV on Sept. 7. Every player remembers her first goal, but to Christoph it had special meaning.
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"The goal itself was kind of entertaining since the girl that was defending me was like 5-10 and I'm only 5-3," Christoph said. "She kind of pushed me into the ball, but it went in, so I was happy with how it turned out."
Scoring goals is not Christoph's only talent. She takes equal pleasure in setting up her teammates for markers of their own. "One of my goals for this year is to accumulate as many points as I can, both by scoring and assisting," she said.
Coming up with chances for assists is a bit easier, as she earned the responsibility of taking corner kicks for her squad.
"It's a considerable weight but with Keeley (Dowling, junior defender) in there, it's a but easier. She's already picked up two goals and an assist off of them."
Not that Christoph finds the role difficult, "It's really not hard at all, I just try to find her (Dowling's) head."
The strategy seems to be working for her. Going into weekend play at the First Tennessee Lady Vol Classic, Christoph stands third on the squad in goals (one), while leading the team with three assists. Christoph made an immediate impact on her squad in the opening weekend of action, notching her first career point by assisting on a Dowling goal in a 3-1 victory over Fresno State.
Moving up to the college game and collegiate life is always an adjustment for new student-athletes. Unlike most freshmen trying to accustom themselves to the rigors of being a student-athlete, however, Christoph has found it to be a great experience so far.
"It's demanding, but basically all the resources we need are here. It would be very hard to get behind in academics or to not excel in soccer with the outstanding support that we have at UT. It's not like a job or anything, it's just fun."
As the season progresses, Ali Christoph will be featured in the Lady Vol Soccer Diaries, providing a glimpse into the lives of Lady Vol athletes. This week, Ali talks about the trip out West, where Tennessee faced Mountain West Conference foes BYU and UNLV.
Despite the unbearable heat, less-than-perfect conditions, and the long flights, our cross-country trip was worth it.
We left on Wednesday for our six-day journey to the western part of the country. Because we weren't scheduled to arrive in Provo, Utah, until late that night, we trained that morning at 6:30 a.m. before we left. We're really dedicated, eh?
Despite a loss at BYU on Friday night, the weekend seemed to go our way. For a few minutes at the beginning of the game, I actually thought we had some fans, considering some people in the crowd were yelling our numbers and names. Looking a little closer, however, I realized that hardly any of the 3,000 fans in the crowd were wearing orange. Then, listening closer, I realized they were all yelling at us, not for us. Every time Lyndsey (Patterson, junior forward) would dribble down the line, she heard thousands of screams and insults, despite the fact that she consistently beat her player every time.
After the game, we ate a late dinner at the TGI Friday's. We played the 'Guess what movie this line is from' game which I think we all agree Ange (Kelly, head coach) definitely won.
We left for UNLV on Saturday morning, had some light training that afternoon, and then relaxed for the night. We had a fun bonding dinner in our 'castle,' the Excalibur Hotel. We ate, watched the free magic shows, and witnessed Ashley (Dawes, junior forward) dump an entire glass of water on herself...she showed that we tend to leave our talents on the field.
On Sunday, we met UNLV on their field and walked away with a 5-2 win in over-100 degree temperatures. I scored my first career goal in the first half of the game. Later, I picked up an assist when a corner kick bounced off Keeley's head to Lyndsey for a goal to stretch our lead. The rest of the evening was left to us and the city of Vegas...that is, until 12:30 Monday morning, when our red-eye flight across the country left for home.
