MATCH CENTRAL: #25 Tennessee vs. ETSU

The 25th-ranked Lady Vols face another in-state foe on Thursday, hosting ETSU in a 7 p.m. ET contest.

Tennessee is a perfect 2-0 on the season, winning 3-0 at Lipscomb in its most recent outing. Junior Jordan Fusco, freshman Keaton Mitchell, and sophomore Kameron Simmonds all found the back of the net for UT. Redshirt-senior Maria Nelson and sophomore Ally Brown recorded assists.

ETSU also enters the match undefeated, taking a 2-0 win over Davidson on Sunday and having played Kennesaw State to a 0-0 draw on Thursday.

Admission is free for all preseason and regular-season soccer matches. For fans planning to attend, note that Tennessee's clear bag policy will be in effect again this season.

GAME PROMOTIONS:

$1 Hot Dog Night
Food Trucks: Gohan's Japanese Grill & Irvey's Ice Cream
Halftime Waffle Eating Contest

VS THE BUCCANEERS: This will mark the eighth meeting between the two schools, with UT owning a 7-0 all-time record and a 4-0 record when playing in Knoxville.

SCOUTING ETSU: The Buccaneers finished the 2022 season with an overall record of 5-6-6 and a 3-3-3 mark in SOCON play. This season, they were voted to finish seventh in the SOCON by the league's coaches.

FRESHMEN FINDING THEIR GROOVE: In the Lady Vols' first two contests, all four of UT's active freshmen have recorded a goal or assist. Forwards Kate Runyon and Sarah Greiner each logged goals, and defender Linette Hofmann tallied an assist in the season opener against Cal, while midfielder Keaton Mitchell put her name on the scorecard with a goal at Lipscomb.

STOUT DEFENSE: UT's back line has conceded just one goal on the season and has limited opponents to eleven shots, only three of which have been on frame.

IN THE RANKINGS: After being unranked in the preseason poll, the Lady Vols jumped into the rankings in the Week 1 United Soccer Coaches Poll, landing at #25.

SIMMONDS SNIPING: Kameron Simmonds has scored a goal in both games thus far, leading the team in shots taken with six, all of which have been on frame for a perfect shot-on-goal percentage. She earned SEC Offensive Player of the Week honors for her efforts.

EVERYONE IS DANGEROUS: Including two goals from the exhibition contest against #7 Alabama, UT's nine goals thus far have been scored by eight different players. Freshmen Sarah Greiner, Kate Runyon and Keaton Mitchell, sophomores Kameron Simmonds (2) and Jenna Stayart, junior Jordan Fusco, redshirt-senior Maria Nelson and graduate Samantha Agresti have all found the back of the net for the Big Orange.

TRACKING THOMAS: Jaida Thomas finished the 2022 season with 13 goals to rank second in the SEC. She enters the 2023 season with a career total of 38 goals, sitting within five of tying Kylee Rossi at No. 1 all time in career goals scored at UT.

NEW FACES: Tennessee added 10 newcomers in its 2023 signing class. All 10 are versatile field players with six enrolling as freshmen and four arriving as transfers with multiple years of collegiate experience. BACK AGAIN: The Lady Vols return five starters and 20 letterwinners from the 2022 team that clinched an SEC East Division title for the third straight season.
PLAYERS TO WATCH: Redshirt senior Jaida Thomas, senior Lawson Renie, juniors Sheridan Michel and Jordan Fusco, and sophomore Kameron Simmonds were all named to the SEC Preseason Watch List.
UP NEXT: UT will head west for an 8 p.m. ET matchup at SMU on Sunday.