The No. 12-ranked Florida Gators soccer team will take on Southeastern Conference rival Vanderbilt at 7 p.m. on Friday night at James G. Pressly Stadium.
The Gators’ loss to Tennessee on Sept. 25 definitely altered cheerful spirits coming off a win to a tough Georgia team just two days prior.
“We had a slow start and got ourselves in a hole that we just couldn’t climb out of in the end.” Florida coach Becky Burleigh said. “It really stings to have that loss.”
UF midfielder Holly King felt that mistakes were made in the Tennessee game, but “preparation this week is really important” and said the Gators would “work hard and practice to fix the mistakes that happened this past weekend.”
However, not all spirits were low. Senior goalkeeper Brooke Chancey is excited for this weekend’s games, and a special postgame event on Friday.
“We’ve got big games, Kentucky and Vandy, and a fireworks display.” Chancey said. “Any SEC game is one to get excited for.”
Burleigh is looking forward to the match in order to move past the loss in Knoxville, Tenn.
“We are excited to play this weekend so we can get that (loss against Tennessee) out of our systems,” Burleigh said.
Burleigh said the Gators have an advantage to be playing teams in the SEC because they have access to the other teams’ game videos, which allows them to practice for individual games.
Despite coming off of the loss to last week and a move back in the NCAA rankings from No. 6 to No. 12, the Gators (8-3) have a better record than Vanderbilt (6-4).
Florida went head-to-head against the Commodores twice in the 2010 season. Florida won both matches, including a close game in the SEC Tournament.
In Friday’s match, Florida fans can expect to see Gators forward Erika Tymrak putting her striking skills up againsts Vanderbilt forward/mid-fielder Candace West. Tymrak has 17 shots on goal this season while West has 14 shots on goal to lead their teams.
Vanderbilt will need to continue its strong defense in order to keep the Gators off of the scoreboard. The Commodores have scored 10 goals this season and allowed 9 goals this season.
The Gators, on the other hand, will need a strong offense, making sure to move forward to take advantage of shot opportunities due to the Commodores’ success at limiting opponents’ shots on goal. Vanderbilt has allowed only 35 shots on goal, making 26 saves. Florida goal keepers have made 42 saves on 55 shots on goal.
Both teams are coming off of road losses this past week and will look to return to the win column. The Commodores lost at Auburn and Alabama last weekend.
UF soccer alumnae will be in attendance and a special fireworks display will take place after Friday’s game.
Gator Country reporter Michelle Provenzano can be reached at michelleprovenzano@GatorCountry.com. You can also follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/mmprovenzano