Oct. 10, 2011
Vanderbilt forward Gena Inbusch has been named the Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Week for her performance this weekend in a pair of Commodore victories. Inbusch scored the golden goal on Friday against LSU and then added an assist on the game-winner against Arkansas on Sunday.
A native of Upper Arlington, Ohio, Inbusch scored the second goal of her VU career in the 103rd minute to give the Commodores their first SEC win of the 2011 season while also handing LSU its first league defeat. Inbusch got in behind the Tiger defense thanks to a wonderful pass by senior Emily Grant and calmly finished inside the far post over LSU’s charging goalkeeper.
Making the goal even more special? The LSU game had been designated as VU’s “Power in Pink” contest to raise awareness of breast cancer — with Commodore players sporting pink shoelaces, headbands and wristbands — and both Inbusch and Grant are the daughters of breast cancer survivors.
Returning on Sunday, Inbusch was involved in both of Vanderbilt’s goals in their 2-0 shutout of Arkansas. She was credited with an assist on the first goal, serving a perfect ball to the near post that senior Elizabeth Lillie volleyed home. Inbusch also started the play that resulted in the Commodores’ second goal, playing a ball into the box that Lillie used to setup senior Candace West for the score.
Below are some additional notes from this weekend’s games.
THREE-POINTERS Along with Inbusch, two Commodore seniors posted three-point weekends. Candace West assisted CJ Rhoades on Friday’s game-tying goal before scoring the second goal in Sunday’s match. West has a team-leading 10 points this season (four goals, two assists). Elizabeth Lillie had a goal and an assist on Sunday. Lillie was rewarded for a wonderful near-post run with a perfect pass from Inbusch that she blasted into the goal. Ninety-one seconds later, she laid off a pass to West that would become VU’s second score.
SIX POINTS FOR SEVENTH After opening Southeastern Conference play with four consecutive road games (and subsequently, four losses), Vanderbilt won a pair of home matches this weekend against LSU and Arkansas. After opening the weekend in 12th place, the two key league victories give Vanderbilt six points, which is tied for seventh overall in the SEC with Arkansas. The Commodores, of course, hold the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Razorbacks.
EXTRA TIME This past Friday, Oct. 7, was an exciting day of SEC soccer, with five of six games needing extra time to find a winner. Only South Carolina’s 4-1 victory over Alabama was decided in 90 minutes. Georgia’s 4-3 win over Mississippi State lasted the longest (103:02), but only by seven seconds over VU’s 2-1 win over LSU.
EAST BEATS WEST All 12 games on this past weekend’s schedule featured SEC Eastern Division teams facing off against Western Division foes. In those matchups, the East went 11-1, with the lone Western win coming from LSU at Kentucky on Sunday. The only league loss the 5-1 Tigers have suffered all season was Friday at Vanderbilt. The Western Division will have its chance at revenge in two weeks, as all 12 games on Thursday, Oct. 20 and Sunday, Oct. 23, will be East vs. West affairs. Vanderbilt travels to Ole Miss that Thursday before returning home to play host to Mississippi State on Sunday.
THIS WEEKEND The Commodores continue their four-game home stand this weekend, playing host to Georgia and Tennessee. The Georgia game is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT on Friday, Oct. 14. Sunday’s game against Tennessee will begin at 1 p.m. CT, one hour earlier than normal to accommodate the CSS broadcast.
