University of Tennessee Athletics
Three VFLs On To Round of 16 In 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup
August 02, 2023 | Soccer
Three VFLs are advancing to the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup Round of 16 as Jamaica and Nigeria finish second in their respective groups.
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Current Tennessee sophomore Kameron Simmonds and former UT standout and reigning CONCACAF Women's Player of the Year Bunny Shaw made history as Jamaica played Brazil to a 0-0 draw on Wednesday to send the Reggae Girlz to their first-ever appearance in the knockout stage. In its previous two matches, the squad claimed a 1-0 victory over Panama and played France to a 0-0 draw to finish second in Group F. Simmonds made her World Cup debut against Panama, playing the final 11 minutes of the match. Shaw, who captains Jamaica, missed the contest vs. Panama due to a red card late in the game with France, but she started the two other matches.
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With a 3-2 win over host-country Australia and a pair of 0-0 draws against Canada and Ireland, Nigeria finished second in Group B to advance to the World Cup Round of 16 for the third time in history. A former forward on Rocky Top and current member of the Houston Dash, Michelle Alozie had a major role in the Super Falcons' success, playing every minute of the tournament thus far.
Nigeria will face England at 3:30 a.m. ET on Monday, Aug. 7. Jamaica will play the winner of Group H at 4:30 a.m. ET on Tuesday, Aug. 8.
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UT has had a player active in every Women's World Cup dating back to 1999. The Lady Vols had three players on rosters in both the 2011 and 2015 World Cups, but the 2023 foursome of Shaw, Simmonds, Alozie and Hannah Wilkinson marked a program best. The total number of VFLs appearing in a World Cup now stands at seven, with Kendyl Michner (Mexico), Rhian Wilkinson (Canada), and Marie-Eve Nault (Canada) rounding out the group.Â
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Current Tennessee sophomore Kameron Simmonds and former UT standout and reigning CONCACAF Women's Player of the Year Bunny Shaw made history as Jamaica played Brazil to a 0-0 draw on Wednesday to send the Reggae Girlz to their first-ever appearance in the knockout stage. In its previous two matches, the squad claimed a 1-0 victory over Panama and played France to a 0-0 draw to finish second in Group F. Simmonds made her World Cup debut against Panama, playing the final 11 minutes of the match. Shaw, who captains Jamaica, missed the contest vs. Panama due to a red card late in the game with France, but she started the two other matches.
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With a 3-2 win over host-country Australia and a pair of 0-0 draws against Canada and Ireland, Nigeria finished second in Group B to advance to the World Cup Round of 16 for the third time in history. A former forward on Rocky Top and current member of the Houston Dash, Michelle Alozie had a major role in the Super Falcons' success, playing every minute of the tournament thus far.
Nigeria will face England at 3:30 a.m. ET on Monday, Aug. 7. Jamaica will play the winner of Group H at 4:30 a.m. ET on Tuesday, Aug. 8.
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UT has had a player active in every Women's World Cup dating back to 1999. The Lady Vols had three players on rosters in both the 2011 and 2015 World Cups, but the 2023 foursome of Shaw, Simmonds, Alozie and Hannah Wilkinson marked a program best. The total number of VFLs appearing in a World Cup now stands at seven, with Kendyl Michner (Mexico), Rhian Wilkinson (Canada), and Marie-Eve Nault (Canada) rounding out the group.Â
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