Bulldog Soccer Set For Tennessee, Senior Night Friday
October 29, 2009 | Soccer
“As surreal as it is playing possibly our last game at home, it has been an incredible journey,” said senior Lindsay Stein. “I know we seniors couldn't ask for better teammates and a better atmosphere for Senior Night to conclude an awesome regular season, but more importantly to kick off our postseason run. I have been so blessed with the opportunity to be a part of this program and to be on a team with these girls and I have some of my best soccer memories on our field.”
Georgia is coming off its third straight split weekend after defeating Alabama 3-0 at home last Thursday and dropping a 2-0 match-up on the road at Auburn on Sunday. The Lady Vols lead Georgia, 10-6, in the all-time series, but the Bulldogs have won the last two regular-season meetings between the SEC rivals. The Bulldogs will also be looking for a bit of revenge as it was Tennessee who ousted Georgia from last year’s SEC Tournament, 1-0.
This weekend will determine the final standings in the conference as a number of teams are still jostling for position prior to next week’s tournament.
Georgia is 6-8 all-time in regular-season finales, including a 2-2 mark since 2005 under Patrick Baker.
"We are excited to host Tennessee here tomorrow night and this has become a very big game for both teams,” said head coach Patrick Baker. “Georgia and Tennessee have competed at the highest level over the past few years and this year is no different. We have the utmost respect for their players and coaches - they are always in contention for the SEC regular season and tournament championships."
“We will be recognizing eight very special seniors and cannot speak enough of their accomplishments on and off the field. They are all tremendous people, dedicated students and quality soccer players. The 2009 senior class came to the University of Georgia when a lot of young ladies wouldn't even look our way. They have re-written the record books and there is still more to come from this group."
SENIOR NIGHT: Friday will mark Senior Night for the Bulldogs’ eight seniors - Michelle Betos, Natalie Farley, Lauren Glancy, Leslie McConnell, Carrie Patterson, Mary Ricker, Lindsay Stein, and Olivia West. The senior class has led Georgia to two NCAA Tournament appearances and has an overall record of 52-28-4 heading into the weekend.
LAST TIME OUT: The Bulldogs scored all three of their goals in a span of 4:25 in the first half to defeat Alabama, 3-0, last Thursday. Georgia got goals from three different players -- Carrie Patterson, Caroline Simpson, and Ashley Miller -- to put away the Tide and wrap up a 3-2 homestand. Michelle Betos was only forced to make one save as UGA outshot Alabama 22-1 on the night. The Bulldogs then headed to Auburn for Sunday’s regular-season road finale, but came away empty-handed as the Tigers pulled out the 2-0 win. The teams went into halftime tied at zero before Rebecca Howell scored first for Auburn in the 56th minute, after Georgia had allowed only one goal in the previous six halves. Howell scored again in the 79th minute and Auburn never looked back. Georgia fired four shots in the final 10 minutes but couldn’t find the back of the net. Michelle Betos finished with a season-high nine saves on the afternoon, while Georgia outshot Auburn 16-14.
SEC STANDINGS: The Bulldogs stand in third place in the SEC East with a record of 6-4-0 in league games, sitting five points behind first-place Florida and four behind South Carolina in their division. Georgia is fourth overall in the league standings, also four points off LSU in the West, though the Tigers have two regular-season games remaining. The Bulldogs are four points up on the Lady Vols in the East. UGA is now 86-68-11 all-time in SEC matches, including a 36-22-4 mark under head coach Patrick Baker since 2005. In 2008, the Bulldogs posted a 7-3-1 ledger in conference play on their way to a second-place finish in the SEC East.
SCOUTING THE LADY VOLS: Geogia hosts a Tennessee team that has won just once in its last five outings, with that win coming last time out, a 2-0 win over Alabama. The Lady Vols are led by Mick Imgram -- who leads the SEC in goals (12), points (27), and shots (73). The senior has been a one-woman show this season, as the next leading scorer for Tennessee -- Chelsea Hatcher -- has three goals and only four other players have scored this season. Keeper Molly Baird has played all 1,702 minutes this season and is fifth in the league in saves with 83, allowing 1.11 goals per game and stopping just under 80% of shots sent her way for a total of seven shutouts. The Lady Vols are narrrowly outscoring opponents, 22-21, and fire 16.7 shots per game on average.
A LOOK AT THE BULLDOGS: Georgia is led by senior forward Carrie Patterson, who has a team-best nine goals on the season after two vs. South Carolina and one Thursday vs. Alabama. The two-goal effort marked Patterson’s ninth career multi-goal game (the most in program history). Patterson adds four assists for 22 points, while leading the team with five game-winners and going 3-for-3 on PKs this season. Jamie Pollock boasts 13 points (6g, 1a), while Ashley Miller also has 13 (4g, 5a). Alex Hooker has four goals and one assist for nine points, while seven other Georgia players have scored at least once in what has been a balance season offensively for Georgia, which is outscoring its opponents by a 34-16 margin. Veteran goalkeeper Michelle Betos has logged 1,570 minutes this season, posting a 0.92 gaa and a .820 save percentage while stopping 73 shots in goal. Betos has seven shutouts to her name. The Dogs average 1.89 goals per game, are leading opponents in corners, 114-50, and have more than doubled opponents’ in the shot column (16.1-8.0).
NOTING THE BULLDOGS: All three of UGA’s goals vs. Alabama Oct. 22 came in a span of 4 minutes, 25 seconds in the first half. ... Georgia has now scored three or more goals in a game seven times this season. ... By allowing just one shot to Alabama, UGA has allowed five or fewer shots to an opponent on eight occasions this season, including zero allowed to FAU on Sept. 4. ... the Auburn game was only the second road loss of the year for the Bulldogs ... Georgia’s shutouts vs. Arkansas, Kentucky, and Vanderbilt (Sept. 27-Oct. 4) marked the first time in program history the team has posted back-to-back-to-back shutouts in SEC contests. ... The 3-0 win over Vanderbilt on Oct. 4 clinched the Bulldogs’ fifth straight year with double-digit wins, matching the five consecutive seasons from 1995-99 with at least 10 victories. In the five years before head coach Patrick Baker arrived in 2005, the Bulldogs had double-digit wins in three seasons. ... Georgia is the only team in the SEC without playing an overtime game yet this season. ... The Bulldogs continue to lead the SEC in corner kicks, taking 114 on the season.
BULLDOG MILESTONES: Two Georgia players reached milestones recently. First, senior forward Carrie Patterson’s two goals against South Carolina gave her a total of nine multi-goal games for her career, a new Georgia record as she surpassed Mandy Aiken’s eight. Patterson is the all-time leading scorer in UGA history with 42 career goals and 106 career points, and is just one off of tying the assist record as well as she now has 22 helpers for her career. Patterson is only one off the program record for game-winning goals, now with 14 after the Alabama game. Stephanie Yarem’s 15 game-winning goals is the current record at UGA. Senior goalkeeper Michelle Betos’ three saves vs. Florida Oct. 18 moved her into 10th all-time in the SEC in saves. Betos is only 4.5 career shutouts off the record at UGA, held by Nicole Williams, as Betos has 25 for her career. Betos is also only two off Williams’ record for career wins in a Bulldog uniform, owning 47 to date.
SEC RECORDS WATCH: Carrie Patterson currently ranks first among active players in the SEC in points (106) and is just one away from moving into a tie for ninth all-time in that category in an always-competitive soccer conference. Her 42 career goals ranks first among active players as well and is just one off moving her into a 10th place tie all-time. With 22 career assists, Patterson is third among active players there. Keeper Michelle Betos, with a 1.00 goals-against average for her career, stands in fourth among active players in that category in the SEC. Tenth place is 0.91. Betos’ 304 career saves is second among active players and also good for ninth all-time in the conference, while her 25 shutouts ranks first among active players and sits her tied for fourth all-time in the SEC in that category.
GEORGIA IN THE RPI: The Georgia soccer team jumped from No. 12 to No. 9 in the latest Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) report released Oct. 19 by the NCAA. The Bulldogs are the highest ranked SEC team. Stanford is No. 1 followed by North Carolina, Portland, Central Florida, Florida State, UCLA, Wake Forest, Boston College, Georgia and Notre Dame to round out the top-10. The Bulldogs have seven other wins against teams in the RPI top-100 including No. 66 Vanderbilt, No. 81 Arkansas, No. 87 Mississippi State, No. 88 Kentucky, and non-conference opponents No. 37 Minnesota, No. 50 Charlotte and No. 70 Northeastern. The SEC has five teams in the RPI top 21, and the Bulldogs’ only losses have come against No. 16 Florida, No. 20 Ole Miss and No. 21 LSU. The RPI is the most important criteria used by the NCAA to determine the 64-team field for the NCAA Tournament that compares results and strength of schedule.
BAKER NEARS RECORD: With a 13-4-1 record so far this season, UGA head coach Patrick Baker is now 64-34-6 in his fifth season at the helm. Bill Barker is the winningest coach in program history at 65-30-8 in five seasons from 1995-99, leaving Baker just one off the mark and two from setting the new school record.
ON DECK: The Bulldogs will next head for Orange Beach, Ala., to take part in the 2009 SEC Championships, set for Nov. 4-8. For the first time all games will be available streaming on SECsports.com while the championship will be carried on ESPNU on Nov. 8 at 3 p.m. EST.
