Oct. 9, 2008
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NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Vanderbilt soccer opens a four-game road trip this weekend against Georgia and Tennessee in Southeastern Conference Eastern Division action.
VU will face the Bulldogs (3-8-1, 1-2-1 SEC) on Friday at 6 p.m. CT and the Vols (5-7-0, 2-2-0 SEC) on Sunday at Noon CT.
The Commodores (7-4-1, 1-3-0) will look to build on their 2-1 victory over No. 24 South Carolina last Sunday. The win snapped a three-match losing streak, all in league play. Since getting blanked against Alabama, 2-0, on Sept. 26, the Vanderbilt offense has come alive scoring at least two goals in its last three games. VU scored three first-half goals against No. 15 Florida last Friday, before falling in overtime 4-3.
Sophomore Molly Kinsella led the offensive attack last weekend scoring three goals and assisting on another. She now leads the Commodores in scoring with five goals and four assists.
Georgia has played one of the tougher schedules in the country, with non-conference matchups against Top-25 foes Virginia, Stanford, Southern Cal, North Carolina and Duke. The Bulldogs went 0-5 in those games and also lost to Top-25 Florida in the SEC opener two weeks ago.
The Bulldogs 1-2-1 conference ledger places them just a point ahead of the Commodores in the SEC East standings. Junior forward Carrie Patterson, a Hermann Trophy preseason candidate, leads the team in scoring with five goals and three assists (13 points). Junior goalkeeper Michelle Betos sports a 1.92 goals against average and has given up at least one goal in 11-straight games after recording a shutout in the opener against Mercer on Aug. 22.
The Commodores hold a 9-6-0 series advantage over Georgia and are 4-3 in games played in Athens. UGA won 3-2 in overtime a year ago in Nashville, while VU won 2-1 in overtime in Athens in 2006.
Tennessee rebounded from an 0-2 start in SEC play (losses to South Carolina and Florida) to win home games against LSU and Arkansas last weekend. The Vols are 4-1 on the year at home and are led in scoring by senior Kylee Rossi, who has eight goals and an assist entering this weekend’s action. Senior goalkeeper Jaimel Johnson has a 1.36 goals against average with three shutouts on the year.
Vanderbilt holds a 7-6-2 all-time series lead over the Lady Vols, but have lost the last two meetings. UT won 3-1 last year in Nashville and 2-1 in overtime two seasons ago in Knoxville.
Both contests will have Internet audio, and can be heard for free via VUcommodores.com.