GAINESVILLE, Fla. – A new season starts across the Southeastern Conference this week as league play begins. Florida (2-5) opens league play Friday with a home match versus 2021 SEC Tournament champion Tennessee (4-2-1).
Friday, Sept. 16 versus RV Tennessee (4-2-1)
Time/Site: 7 p.m. ET at Donald R. Dizney Stadium<https://floridagators.com/sports/2020/4/4/donald-r-dizney-stadium.aspx>
Streaming Video: SEC Network +<https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/c42b3a90-b215-44f5-b9d6-5ff768f33757> with action called by Kyle Crooks and Matthew Stubbington
Streaming Audio: GatorVision with action called by Skyler Lebron
Live Stats<http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=411576>
Tickets: Free
Promotions:
First 100 UF students get free popcorn!
Last Gators Match:
Florida closed non-conference play with a tough 2-1 loss on a rainy day at East Carolina (5-2-1).
All the goals came in the second half. Florida took the lead in the 49th minute when junior Delaney Tauzel converted a penalty kick awarded after a Pirates’ handball in the box.
Carsen Parker gave ECU the tying and go-ahead goals off set plays. She put in a penalty kick in the 59th minute and scored the game-winner at 84:17 with a free kick from just above the box.
It was the first meeting between the two programs since 2003 and first ever in Greenville, N.C. UF leads the series 2-1.
Friday versus Tennessee:
Florida and Tennessee are among Friday’s five league matches. All 14 SEC teams open with a single league match this week.
Florida is 20-4-3 all-time in SEC home openers, including last season’s 1-0 overtime win versus Kentucky. This is the fifth time Tennessee was Florida SEC home opener, with UF owning a 3-1 advantage in those meetings.
Both Florida and Tennessee are led by coaches in their first season at the institutions after coaching at NCAA Division II programs. Samantha Bohon joined the Gators in May after spending the last 15 seasons at Embry-Riddle in Daytona Beach, Fla. While with Embry-Riddle, Bohon coached four consecutive Sun Conference Tournament champion teams and after the program transitioned to NCAA Division II, finished with the last two Sunshine State Tournament titles, advancing to NCAA DII Tournament action both seasons.
Tennessee’s Joe Kirt was elevated from associate head coach to head coach on April 29, 2022, replacing Brian Pensky who left to take Florida State’s open position. This is Kirt’s 16th season with UT as he began as a Lady Vols Assistant Coach for the 2007 season. The Lady Vols are receiving votes in the latest United Soccer Coaches top 25 poll.<https://unitedsoccercoaches.org/rankings/college-rankings/ncaa-di-women/>
Tennessee is picked to win the league in the 2022 SEC preseason coaches poll, which would be UT’s first SEC title since 2005. Tennessee has three on the 2022 Missouri Athletic Club Hermann Trophy Watch list – sophomore midfielder Taylor Huff, junior forward Jaida Thomas and graduate forward Mackenzie George. Thomas’ eight goals in 2022 action leads SEC players.
UF leads the all-time series 18-13-3
