University of Tennessee Athletics
Soccer Starts 2012 Practice, New Chapter
August 01, 2012 | Soccer
Aug. 1, 2012
Here are a few notable quotes from the first day of preseason training camp:
HEAD COACH Brian Pensky
"One thing that sold me here on Tennessee is that Athletic Director Dave Hart constantly preaches the people aspect - life is about relationships. I'm a big believer in that. Getting to know each kid and developing that is big."
"We are going to stay in a four-back. They had a four-back last year. But I love our wide back sticking at forward with our defenders attacking out of there. So really at times we are going to attack with seven out of 10 field players. If we are good enough and we are fit enough, we like to throw the house, so to speak, at teams - attack with numbers and not be dependent on just one or two personalities. The stuff we are going to start on today is quick little combination play, give-and-goes and things like that. We are going to find ways to creatively get behind defenses."
"We return Caroline Brown, who was one of those top goal scorers from last year. She's a very savvy soccer player. She's intelligent, she's skillful and then she's obviously very good around the goal. So I think she's going to be big for us. This spring, Alexis Owens scored five goals for us in our exhibition games. Her speed is pretty unmatched. The only kid I've seen that matches is the kid that played next to her in the spring - Iyana Moore. That tandem up front - I don't know if there's going to be a tandem that's as fast as those two. Kylie Bono had five goals last year and she can hit a ball from distance. Amy Harrison is good. We're going to be a good team in the air. Ali Hall is our center back. She's very good coming forward on set pieces. I hope that we're not one or two kids with seven to nine goals. If it's by committee, it's by committee. But I think we're going to find out right now who can score goals."
"It's just exciting. We have new beginnings and new things coming our way. We're just excited. We're just ready to play. We're ready to be out there and see what we can do because we have the talent. We're ready."
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KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -The Tennessee soccer team opened its 2012 preseason training camp at Regal Soccer Stadium on Wednesday, turning the page for a new chapter in program history under the direction of first-year head coach Brian Pensky.
Lightning in the Knoxville area delayed the start of practice until the late afternoon with a brief stoppage an hour in, but UT returned to the field to continue shaping a 2012 squad that looks to be even more successful than the 2011 team that went 15-7 with an NCAA Tournament appearance.
Pensky was the University of Maryland's head coach for seven seasons and the 2010 Soccer America National Coach of the Year. This preseason training camp will in a sense serve as proving grounds for the team as Pensky discovers who will step up as the leaders for 2012.
"I'm a believer in empowerment," Pensky said. "I'm the head coach and our coaching staff is the coaching staff, but we're trying to teach these kids how to be leaders, how to deal with life and how to work through difficult moments and work through some challenges among themselves. This group is going to find that they are going to have a lot of moments where they have got to make decisions and take ownership of this team. I think it's going to serve them well in the long run."
Big Orange fans can expect to see an aggressive attack this fall that has been a signature of Pensky's teams.
"We want to keep the ball on the field," he said. "Life is about scoring goals. This is about winning. You've got to score goals. People believe that defense wins championships. No disrespect to our goalkeepers and no disrespect to our defenders, but I want to score goals."
UT HAS 2 GAMES ON TV
The Southeastern Conference unveiled the 2012 women's soccer television schedule Wednesday afternoon. Tennessee will have two road games on television this fall.
UT's Oct. 7 match at Auburn at 2 p.m. ET will be shown on CSS. SportSouth will broadcast the Lady Vols' match at Ole Miss on Oct. 21 at 2 p.m. ET.
ECKEL WELCOMES NEW PLAYERS
Sophomore goalkeeper Julie Eckel, a 2011 Freshman All-SEC Team selection, is excited for her second season in Orange and White.
"I'm really excited to get to train with Joe Kirt again," Eckel said. "He's great. All of the new players coming in just puts a new perspective on what people can do with the ball and how their touches go. Having people with different abilities than what we had on the 2011 team is really exciting because it will give all of the goalkeepers a new look and help us get more prepared for the season."
SISTER ACT
As sisters two years apart in age, junior Caroline Capocaccia and freshman Suzanne Capocaccia have played on the same soccer team before. Caroline is thrilled to have her little sister in a matching uniform once again.
"It's really fun playing with her again," Caroline said. "In high school, I really didn't get to play with her that much because she got injured really quickly. I'm having a lot of fun just being around her all the time because I missed her a lot. We have a chemistry. Sometimes we argue, but it's really fun to play with her and have her around because she is kind of my best friend."
ROCKY TOP HURRICANE
Graduate student Ashlee Burt joins Tennessee this season after an undergrad career at the University of Miami. Burt, who is the daughter of former New York Giants and San Francisco 49ers defensive lineman Jim Burt, Sr., is excited to continue her career at UT and in the SEC.
"The transition from Miami to Tennessee so far has been great," Burt said. "All of the girls are extremely welcoming and super nice and the coaches have been great too. It's just a great level of soccer and it has just been really fun. The campus is awesome and I'm looking forward to all of the things we have for this season. This seems like a great bunch of girls and I'm excited to get started."
