In what can only be described as sheer dominance, the women’s soccer team have gone undefeated in their first four games and are on an absolute tear as of late.
They’ve been strong at every position on the pitch and have shown little to no weakness so far.
They rolled past their early opposition with 5-0, 2-1, and 7-0 victories against Carson-Newman, Webber International, and Southeastern, respectively.
This past Friday’s match against Tusculum was a tougher test for the Spartans as they played to a 0-0 draw that lasted into double overtime.
Despite the draw, the Spartans controlled the match and outshot Tusculum 31-11, but were simply unable to put the ball into the back of the net.
On Tuesday night, the ladies continued their winning ways, defeating Georgia Southwestern 14-0. Junior Lauren Moore had a school record five goals in the contest, and the ladies dominated the whole match.
Over the course of those five games, the team has collectively outscored opponents 14-1, an accomplishment that is nothing short of spectacular.
Head coach Gerry Lucey said, “The team has come in fit and with a great attitude. They are hungry to succeed and the environment has been fantastic to work in.”
This is Lucey’s eighth season as head coach and he is looking to bring back the Sunshine State Conference title to UT after coming up short last season.
“The players themselves feel more togetherness this season and want to put last season behind them,” Lucey said, and the team looks as poised as ever for a run at the SSC title.
The “togetherness” that coach Lucey mentions can visibly be seen on the pitch during matches.
Team captain and junior advertising and public relations major, Lauren Moore, described the team chemistry.
“We have all played with each other and are familiar of each other’s play. We know who wants the ball to feet and who wants the ball into space for a run. A lot of our goals have come from us moving the ball really well, not forcing it when it’s not on, and working it around the opposing defense,” Moore said.
Moore has been an integral part of the attacking unit for UT and currently leads the team in assists.
The forwards themselves have been tearing up opposing defenses as senior communications major Gabby Russo and junior film and media major Amber Pennybaker have been wreaking havoc on the wings.
Junior criminology major Cici Gonzalez and sophomore health sciences major Chelsea Martin have been punishing defenders and currently lead the team with five and four goals each, respectively.
On the other end of the pitch, goalkeeper Caroline Frykgard has earned three shutouts and only allowed one goal over the course of the first four games of the season.
Overall, Frykgard has seen little action between the sticks as the defense has been able to shut down opponents.
Opposing offenses have been limited to an average of less than four shots a game and the back four have been a brick wall on the pitch.
Freshman Tampa native and entrepreneurship major Madison Cox has been an anchor as the center back and crucial to the defense.
“Our back four is a force to be reckoned with. I don’t think you can get a faster defense than the four of us. We may be young, but the defense is one of the strongest parts of our team,” Cox said.
It seems like she is certainly correct in regards to the strength of the defense.
Not only has Cox and the defense been able to shut out opponents, but they have been able to do so cleanly.
Only one yellow card has been handed out and any loose balls were dealt with efficiently as the defense has given up less than ten corner kicks thus far.
With the defense as strong as it is, the offense is able to go all out when need be.
This combination has led to the team’s dominance and the team is looking incredible thus far.
The schedule will start to toughen when the team begins conference play this weekend on the road against Nova Southeastern.
Currently ranked No. 15, the Spartans will need to get past conference rivals No.9 Rollins, as well as tough SSC foes Florida Southern and Barry.
The Spartans have their work cut out for them, but if they can continue this form for the majority of the season, they should be able to expect great things once the tournaments roll around in November.
Marcus Mitchell can be reached at marcus.mitchell@spartans.ut.edu