Soccer to Host No. 24 Tennessee on Thursday
10/19/2011 12:00:00 AM | Soccer
Oct. 19, 2011
| Game #17 | Alabama (7-7-2, 2-5-1 SEC ) vs. #24 Tennessee (12-4-0, 5-3-0 SEC) | |
| Date | Thursday, Oct. 20 | 7 p.m. CT |
| Location | Tuscaloosa, Ala. | Alabama Soccer Stadium (1,500) |
| Tickets | Free Admission |
| Television | TideTV |
| Radio | WVUA-90.7 FM | Listen Live |
| Live Stats | GameTracker |
| Promotions | Chick-Fil-A Night |
| Game Notes | Alabama Notes  | Opponent Notes |
| All-Time Series | Tennessee Leads 9-2-1 | 4-2-0 in Tuscaloosa |
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - The Alabama soccer team (7-7-2 overall, 2-5-1 SEC) will split it matches at home and on the road this week as it hosts No. 24 Tennessee (12-4-0, 5-3-0 SEC) and then hits the road to face Georgia (12-4-0, 6-2-0 SEC) in two key Southeastern Conference matches. The Crimson Tide will face the Lady Vols on Thursday, Oct. 20, at the Alabama Soccer Complex with a 7 p.m., kickoff. On Sunday afternoon, the Tide travels to Athens, Ga., for a match against the Bulldogs at 2 p.m. ET. The match against UGA will air on CSS with Melissa Lee and Christa Mann calling the action from the Turner Soccer Stadium.
LAST TIME OUT
Alabama returned to the friendly confines of the Alabama Soccer Complex for two home matches this past weekend. On Friday night, the Tide played host to the Arkansas Razorbacks for a nationally televised game, and did not disappoint. Alabama prevailed, 3-0, behind two goals from midfielder Molly Atherton, as well as a goal and an assist from Pia Rijsdijk. Justine Bernier earned her fifth shutout of the season. On Sunday afternoon, the Tide faced off against No. 18 LSU in the "Power of Pink" game. The Tigers scored a goal in each half to knock off the Tide, 2-0.
WHO TO WATCH
Sophomore midfielder Molly Atherton has been the catalyst for the Tide offense as of late. She scored the first three goals of her career this season, all in conference play. She scored twice against Arkansas on Friday night, and is tied for second on the team in goals. Her first career tally came on a corner kick against Vanderbilt. On the season, the center-mid has tallied seven points on three goals and an assist.
SCOUTING TENNESSEE
The Lady Volunteers enter the weekend with a 12-4-0 record overall and a 5-3-0 mark in conference play. UT split its matches this past weekend against conference foes. On Friday night, Tennessee faced off against Kentucky in Lexington, and gave up a goal in the second overtime to lose, 1-0. They bounced back against Vanderbilt in Nashville on Sunday, as defender Tori Bailey scored her first goal of the season in the 84th minute to give the Vols a 1-0 win. Sophomore midfielder Caroline Brown leads UT with 10 goals and seven assists on the year for 27 points. Senior forward Emily Dowd also has 10 goals on the year, with six assists, for 26 points. Senior midfielder Chelsea Hatcher leads the team with 56 shots with three more players having more than 40 shots this season. The Lady Vols are led by freshman goalie Julie Eckel, who has started all 16 games. Eckel has a 0.86 goals against average with six shutouts. In 2010, Tennessee just missed out on the NCAA tournament, finishing with a 10-9-1 record overall, and was successful in conference play with a 7-3-1 mark. Tennessee lost to LSU in overtime in the second round of the SEC tournament last season. Angela Kelly is in her 12th season at Knoxville and enters the Alabama game with a 157-81-20 career record.
SERIES HISTORY
Tennessee has had success over Alabama in the series, leading 9-2-1 overall. The Tide are still in search of its first win against the Lady Vols since a 1-0 victory in 1998. Last season, Tennessee's Emily Dowd scored a goal in the second overtime to push the Lady Vols to a 1-0 victory over Alabama in Knoxville. Alabama is 2-4 at home against UT.
SCOUTING GEORIGA
The Bulldogs enter the weekend in a tie for first in the SEC with a conference record of 6-2-0 with an overall mark of 12-4-0. This past weekend was a success for Georgia as the Bulldogs were able to sweep two conference foes. On Friday night, UGA went to Vanderbilt and came away with a 2-0 victory. On Sunday afternoon, the Bulldogs were able to score a goal in the 88th minute to knock off the Kentucky Wildcats on the road, 2-1. Georgia is led by sophomore forward Alexa Newfield's 13 goals, eight assists and 34 points overall. Newfield has 76 shots with a staggering 35 coming on target. In goal, Georgia is led by junior Ashley Baker. Baker has started all 16 matches and has a 1.12 goals against average with four shutouts. The 2010 Bulldogs went 11-6-4 with a 5-3-0 record in the SEC, losing in the semifinals of the SEC Tournament to Florida. Steve Holeman is in his second year as Georgia head coach after spending the previous 15 seasons as head coach at Ole Miss. At UGA, he has a 23-10-4 record and has a 188-134-35 career record overall.
SERIES HISTORY
Georgia leads the overall series 11-3 with Alabama not earning a win since a 3-1 victory in 2004. In the past three meetings, the Tide has been shutout, including a 3-0 defeat last season in Tuscaloosa. Alabama is 1-4 against Georgia in Athens.
GOALS FROM ALL OVER
The Alabama soccer team has had goals scored from all over its roster. The Crimson Tide has had 10 different players score in 2011 for a combined total of 23 goals. The 10 different goal scorers are the most since Alabama had 10 players find the stat sheet in 2008. During that 2008 campaign, the Tide found the back of the net 25 times. The 23 goals this season with three regular season matches remaining, has already surpassed the total of 20 from last season and 14 from 2009. Alabama has had six different players score two or more goals, which are the most in a single season since six scored multiple times in 2008. In 2007, Alabama had nine players record a multi-goal season.
ONE GOAL OR LESS
The Alabama starting defense that features five upperclassmen, including four seniors has been the core of the success in 2011. The Crimson Tide has allowed one goal or less in nine of the 16 matches this season, including five shutouts. Alabama has had two different streaks of allowing one goal or less in four straight matches. The Tide went 6-1-1 over that span. The last shutout for the Tide came against Arkansas (Oct. 14). It was the 19th clean sheet for Justine Bernier for her career.
TOUGH SLATE
Alabama head coach Todd Bramble put together a tough schedule in 2011. The Tide has nine teams on its schedule that are in the top 50 in the RPI. Also, Alabama will have played six teams that were ranked in the regular season. The Tide earned its first win over a ranked opponent since 1999 when it defeated SDSU, 1-0, on Sept. 4. The last time the Tide defeated a ranked opponent before the road win against the Aztecs, was in the opening match of the 1999 season, when the Tide downed No. 19 Vanderbilt, 2-1, in overtime on Aug. 27, in Tuscaloosa.
AROUND THE SEC
Freshman forward Pia Rijsdijk is seventh overall in the SEC with 3.31 shots per game and is sixth in shots overall, with 53. Justine Bernier is third in saves with 74, as well as saves per game with 5.29/game. Bernier is tied for third with five shutouts as well.
RECORD WATCH
Alabama goalkeeper Justine Bernier has already etched her name in the record books in numerous categories and is looking for more in her final season at the Capstone. Bernier earned her 26th career victory (Oct. 14, Arkansas) in goal, moving her into sole possession of second place in the career annals. Tide great Amy Pseja holds the record with 30 career wins. Bernier has extended her career records in saves (412) and shutouts (19).
NEXT WEEK
The Crimson Tide will play its final regular season match of the year on Friday, Oct. 28, taking on Auburn in the soccer's version of the Iron Bowl at 7 pm. CT.
