University of Tennessee Athletics
No. 24 UT Soccer Hosts Lady Vol Classic
August 30, 2007 | Soccer
Lady Vol Classic Game Notes
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - The Lady Vols kick off the 2007 season as the hosts of the eighth First Tennessee Lady Vol Classic. The tournament features No. 7 Penn State, Minnesota and UCF. The Gophers and Knights open festivities on Friday evening at 5:30 p.m. before the Orange and White make their regular season debut against the Nittany Lions at 8 p.m. Sunday???s action begins at 10:30 a.m. with Penn State and UCF followed by the Lady Vols and Minnesota at 1 p.m. UT will open the season at the Lady Vol Classic for the first time in the tournament???s eight-year history.
UT will face the Nittany Lions for the second time in program history on Friday. The two teams battled to a 1-1 tie in Penn State???s tournament last season. The match marks the third time UT has opened the season against a ranked opponent. Sunday will be the first meeting between the Golden Gophers and Lady Vols. Live statistics for all four games will be available on utladyvols.com.
The Lady Vols have compiled a 6-5 record all time in season openers, but have won each of their five previous season openers played at home. The last time UT opened the regular season in Knoxville was on Aug. 27, 2004 when it topped 15th-ranked Duke 4-3 in overtime. The Orange and White have the opportunity to push their record in season openers against ranked opponents over .500 after dropping the 2005 debut 7-1 to North Carolina. The Lady Vols topped ranked opponents in the first game of the year in both 2001 and 2004.
Head Coach Angela Kelly and her assistants Joe Kirt and former UT soccer standout Jen Laughridge Grubb are looking to propel the 2007 edition of the Lady Vols to another level. After last year???s team reached the NCAA Tournament Regional Semifinals for the fourth time in five years, the 2007 squad is looking to ascend to a higher level in collegiate soccer.
Although the Orange and White lost four seniors in 2006, including two-time All-American Ali Christoph, Kelly returns eight starters from the 2006 squad that went 12-7-4 overall. Last year???s top two scorers return in junior Kylee Rossi, the 2006 SEC Offensive Player of the Year, and sophomore Mick Imgram, who notched seven goals and six assists last season. Junior goalkeeper Jaimel Johnson is back in top form after spending eight games last year on the bench due to injury and should be a key cog in the defense.
Tournament action kicks off on Friday at 5:30 p.m. with UCF vs. Minnesota, followed by the Lady Vols??? regular season debut against Penn State at 8 p.m. at Regal Soccer Stadium.
2007 FIRST TENNESSEE LADY VOL CLASSIC SCHEDULE
| Friday, August 31 | |||
| 5:30 p.m. | Central Florida | vs. | Minnesota |
| 8:00 p.m. | Tennessee | vs. | Penn State |
| Sunday, September 2 | |||
| 10:30 a.m. | Central Florida | vs. | Penn State |
| 1:00 p.m. | Tennessee | vs. | Minnesota |
Classic Hits
The Lady Vol Classic has not always been kind to its hosts, as the Orange and White have taken the tournament title just twice in eight years. Last year???s squad went 2-0 to take home the crown after being shutout of the championship in consecutive years in 2004 and 2005. North Carolina has taken home the title twice, while Texas A&M, George Mason and Xavier have each won the tournament once. The 2003 tournament marked Tennessee???s first win and first MVP selection in Keeley Dowling (defensive).
The 2006 Lady Vol Classic saw the Orange and White post a 2-0 win over UNC Greensboro before battling Middle Tennessee to a 2-1 overtime win to take the title on Sunday. Forward Emily Redberg will be looking to match her performance in the 2006 classic, where she scored three of the Lady Vols??? four goals on the weekend and took home offensive MVP honors. Joining Redberg on the 2006 accolades list was Jordan Falcusan, who was awarded the Defensive MVP award. Seniors Ali Christoph and Jenny Jeffers and then-junior Kylee Rossi earned all-tournament honors in 2006.
Last Time Against Penn State
In their first and only meeting with the Nittany Lions in program history, the Lady Vols produced a 1-1 tie in the final match of the 2006 Penn State Invitational. Tennessee struck first in the opening period when forward Kylee Rossi chipped a shot over Penn State goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher for UT???s first goal of the season. Getting credit for the assist after a long free kick over the defense was Lady Vol goalkeeper Jaimel Johnson. In the second half, Penn State tallied its goal in the 81st minute on Katie Schoepfer???s chip over UT???s keeper after a pair of taps did not get the ball back to Johnson. The Nittany Lions held the advantage over the Orange and White in shots (16-14) and saves (6-5), but could not beat Johnson twice through 110 minutes of play.
Grasping the Golden Gophers
UT will face Minnesota for the first time in program history this weekend. The Lady Vols will be looking to earn both their second and third wins all-time against the Big Ten Conference during the tournament, as Penn State and the Golden Gophers are members of the league. Last season, UM finished with an 8-9-2 record overall, going just 1-8-1 in conference play. The Golden Gophers recorded their best non-conference record in program history in 2006, compiling a 7-1-1 mark in games outside out of the tough Big Ten. Head Coach Mikki Denney Wright returns 16 letterwinners and 11 starters from last season, including 2006 Soccer Buzz all-region selection Kelsey Hood and All-Big Ten Freshman Team member Lyndsey Mueller.
Built for Royalty
In its 12th season, the Lady Vol soccer program has a brand new home in Regal Soccer Stadium. Built on the same site as the Tennessee Soccer Complex, Regal features a 3,000 seat grandstand, enclosed press boxes, a hospitality suite, built-in concession stands and full team facilities, including a large player???s lounge, attached training room and state-of-the-art video room with stadium seating. The new stadium was built thanks to the help of the Regal Entertainment Group, important supporters of UT women???s athletics.
Switching Up the Sideline
The Lady Vol coaching staff has added a new face to the sideline for 2007, after losing five-year assistant coach Scott Blount. New assistant Joe Kirt will step in as the goalkeeper coach on Kelly???s staff. Kirt joins the Lady Vols after spending the past two years as the Director of Goalkeeping for the Texas Soccer Club???s Challenge, a youth soccer organization, located in Houston, Texas, comprised of 29 girls??? soccer teams. Prior to his time with the Challenge, Kirt was the assistant coach with the University of Houston under head coach Bill Solberg from 2000-05. Kirt will focus on training the goalkeepers as well as coordinating recruiting, travel and soccer camps.
Returning to Form
At the outset of the 2006 season, the goalkeeper position was up for grabs for the Lady Vols. One year later, the starter is set, though after an injury-filled 2006 in the net for UT, Kelly knows that anything can happen.
Junior Jaimel Johnson was the starter for 15 games last season, but during an Oct. 6 game against LSU, Tennessee lost her to a shoulder injury. The Dayton, Ohio, native did not return to the starting lineup until Nov. 10. Following Johnson???s injury, backup keeper Molly Baird stepped in to take over before injuring her knee, ending her freshman season after playing just 51 minutes in goal. From there, Sarah Kitchin took over, making her first appearance for the Big Orange and eight starts on the season despite being unable to dive to one side due to a shoulder injury.
This season, the Lady Vol goalkeeping core is back on their game with Johnson slated to be the starter. In her 15 starts last season, Johnson posted a 1.05 goals against average, allowing just 16 goals and posting five shutouts. Baird will be competing for the starting role again this season, while Kitchin will provide depth for the Big Orange in what was an unstable position in 2006.
Striking Orange
Two key goal scorers return for the Lady Vols up top in 2007. Junior Kylee Rossi, a two-time All-SEC selection, has the potential to become a force in the attacking third for the Big Orange this season. After recording a career-high 25 points in 2006, Rossi became only the second player in program history to lead the team in scoring in consecutive years.
Along with Rossi, senior Emily Redberg returns at the forward position looking to cap her career with another successful season. Redberg finished 2006 with seven goals and three assists for 17 points, third among returnees. After redshirting in 2005, Redberg enters the season with four years of college experience under her belt, making her a leader on and off the field for the Lady Vols.
Watch Out
Rossi is also one of 45 student-athletes named to the Missouri Athletic Club???s (M.A.C.) 2007 Hermann Trophy Preseason Watch List as announced by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA). The award, which is the soccer equivalent of the Heisman Trophy, is given to the top male and female soccer player in the nation each year. Players are selected to the M.A.C. Hermann Trophy Watch List by a committee of Division I coaches who are NSCAA members. In November, the list will be narrowed to 15 semifinalists. Three finalists will be named in early December in conjunction with the NCAA Division I College Cup and will be invited to the Missouri Athletic Club on Friday, January 11, 2008. The winner of the 2007 award will be announced during a nationally-televised news conference that evening.
Midfield Mix-Up
The Lady Vols??? midfield will see an influx of youth in 2007 after losing a key cog in the center in Ali Christoph, who started every UT game in her four-year career. Although the Big Orange will not be able to immediately replace the two-time All-American, the Lady Vols??? young midfielders have the talent and energy to start a new era in the middle for Tennessee.
Sophomore Mick Imgram returns as last year???s second-leading scorer and is looking to continue to blow the ball past goalkeepers as one of the strongest ball strikers on the team. Imgram is joined by junior Leslie Vineyard, who comes off a 2006 season that saw her start 21 of 23 games in the midfield.
Jumping into the mix are junior transfer Alissa VonderHaar, who will bring a strong physical presence to the midfield, and freshmen Julie Edwards and Tanya Emerson, who will both see plenty of playing time in the midfield.
Youth Influx
With 10 freshmen on the 2007 Lady Vol roster, the veteran UT players will look to set an example for the new faces in the locker room. Among the newcomers are midfielders Julie Edwards and Tanya Emerson and defender Melissa Speros.
Emerson comes to UT after a four-year career at San Clemente High School, where she helped the Tritons to the 2003 California Interscholastic Federation Division I championship. Emerson also led her club, FC Slammers, to the 2003 USYSA U-16 national title and the 2004 U.S. club soccer championship. An excellent distributor with good vision, Emerson should find a home in the Lady Vol central midfield.
Edwards may be the shortest player on the team, but she???s set to make her presence felt for the Lady Vols this season. The 5-1 Glenmoore, Pa., native brings excellent club and high school credentials into her college career, including the 2002 U.S. club soccer national title, a 2006 Pennsylvania all-state selection and the 2006 Olympic Development Program national championship.
Speros will see playing time immediately for the Orange and White after helping the Region I ODP team to a 2006 national title. The Lancaster, Pa., native will bring both solid defense and the ability to go forward into the attacking third to the Tennessee back line.
Along with Edwards, Emerson and Speros, freshmen Grace Cuenin, Anna Fisher and Kyrstin Smith will look to earn playing time and provide depth for the Lady Vols in 2007.
Exhibits A & B
The Lady Vols began the season with a 2-0 exhibition shutout of Carson-Newman College on Aug. 18. A crowd of 2,183 came out for opening night of the new Regal Soccer Stadium. Sophomore midfielder Mick Imgram scored the eventual game winner for the Lady Vols at the 33:10 mark, blasting a rocket past Lady Eagles keeper Melissa Terrell from 30 yards out.
Junior newcomer Alissa VonderHaar gave the Lady Vols an insurance goal in the 79th minute. After receiving a cross from fellow newcomer freshman Julie Edwards, VonderHaar settled the ball on the left hand corner of the box and rifled a shot past Terrell.
UT closed out its preseason with a 1-0 win over the University of Louisville on Aug. 21. The Lady Vols got on the board just 17 minutes into the match when senior forward Emily Redberg put a through ball to junior forward Kylee Rossi in the box. Rossi settled the ball and blasted a shot over diving Cardinals keeper Joanna Haig for the score.
Though the Tennessee players had only been practicing as a unit for one week, the exhibition matches provided several glimpses of the excellent play that could come out of the team this season. Newcomers VonderHaar and Edwards showed their scoring abilities, while veterans Rossi, Redberg and Johnson continued to prove their prowess on the pitch.
Preseason Favorites
Jaimel Johnson, Kylee Rossi and Emily Redberg earned spots on the first annual preseason All-Southeastern Conference team chosen by league coaches.
Rossi returns to the Lady Vols as last year???s leading scorer after posting 25 points on 10 goals and five assists in 2006. The Pennington, N.J., native was second in the SEC in points and third in goals during league games with 15 and six, respectively. Rossi capped the season with Tennessee???s first SEC Offensive Player of the Year award.
As the Lady Vols??? primary starting goalkeeper in 2006, Johnson posted a 1.05 goals against average and 56 saves in 15 games last year. Although an injury sidelined Johnson for most of the SEC season, she returned to post a 1-1-1 record in the NCAA Tournament, including two shutouts. Fully recovered from her injury, the Dayton, Ohio, native is set to start in goal for the Orange and White in 2007.
Redberg is expected be a leader on the field for the Lady Vols this season. The Brooklyn Park, Minn., native tied for second on the squad with seven goals in 2006, finishing the season with 17 points. This season, Redberg will be looking to start off the season with a repeat performance in the First Tennessee Lady Vol Classic after scoring three of the Orange and White???s four goals in the event and earning Offensive MVP honors in 2006.
Coaches??? Choice
UT was picked by league coaches to finish second in the Southeastern Conference???s Eastern Division according to a poll released by the SEC. The Lady Vols received 47 points in the listing, 10 points behind Florida, which was tabbed to take home its second consecutive division title.
The SEC coaches selected Florida to win its second consecutive regular season title after UF registered a three year championship drought from 2002-2004. The Gators garnered nine first-place votes in both the overall and division race, while Kentucky, Georgia and Vanderbilt each received one first-place vote. Auburn was chosen to take its second straight Western Division crown, receiving eight divisional first-place votes.
