University of Georgia Athletics
Bulldogs Set For NCAA First Round Sunday
November 10, 2011 | Soccer
Nov. 10, 2011
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ATHENS, Ga. --- The Georgia soccer team was awarded an at-large bid for the upcoming 2011 NCAA Tournament when the field of 64 was announced on NCAA.com Monday evening. Georgia will travel to take on the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kan., on Sun., Nov. 13 at 1 p.m. ET at the Jayhawk Soccer Complex. The winner will take on the winner of the Duke-Radford game Nov. 18.
The Bulldogs have been out of action since Nov. 2 in the SEC quarterfinals, which will amount to an 11-day layoff by the time they kick off Sunday.
Georgia (12-6-2) narrowly missed the field last season but made sure to get back into the NCAA Tournament in 2011, marking the first appearance under second-year head coach Steve Holeman. The Bulldogs are one of eight to make it from the competitive Southeastern Conference - good for the second-most representation of any league behind only the ACC with nine. Georgia joins Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Kentucky, LSU, South Carolina, and Tennessee in the field from the SEC. The Bulldogs have faced eight members of the 2011 field already this season, going 2-5-2 in those games.
Georgiadogs.com will offer live audio coverage as well as the Georgia Soccer Live Blog for Sunday's action beginning just before kickoff. Additionally, the broadcast will be covered on local radio 1340 WGAU, marking the first time a Georgia NCAA Tournament game is covered on radio.
"We've approached this like we would preseason," Holeman said. "It's a new season for us, and obviously it's do-or-die here. The girls came out with a ton of energy and I thought [Tuesday] was our best training session of the year so far. They're excited. We have a few days left before game-day and I think we've had a lot of time to prepare. It's been a great buildup."
GEORGIA IN THE NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS: Georgia is headed to its fourth tournament in five years and eighth overall, with an all-time record of 5-7-1 in NCAA Tournament play. The Bulldogs last reached the national tournament in 2009, which was a program-best third straight trip. That season the Bulldogs defeated UNC Wilmington in the first round before falling to eventual national champion North Carolina in Chapel Hill, N.C. Georgia's first-ever trip came in 1997 in just its third season in existence, while the program's best run in the NCAA Tournament came in 1998 when it reached the Sweet Sixteen. The Bulldogs have reached the second round in 2001, 2003, 2007, and 2009, and the first round in 1997 and 2008.
Steve Holeman IN THE NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS: Georgia head coach Steve Holeman is making his first tourney appearance at Georgia and his fifth overall after leading the Ole Miss Rebels to four tournaments in his tenure in Oxford. Holeman's Ole Miss squads reached the postseason in 2002, 2003, 2005, and 2009. The best finish was recorded by Holeman's '03 squad that reached the second round and was bested 4-3 by Florida in double overtime.
LAST TIME OUT: The No. 5-seeded Georgia soccer team saw its stay at the 2011 SEC Championships come to an end in the quarterfinals last Wednesday evening, falling 2-0 to fourth-seeded Florida in the final game of the day at the Orange Beach Sportsplex in Orange Beach, Ala. The Gators got both goals from midfielder Tahnai Annis on the night.
LOOKING AT THE JAYHAWKS: Kansas enters the 2011 field of 64 after putting together an 11-8-1 season, most recently falling to eventual league champs Texas A&M in the first round of the Big 12 tournament via penalty kicks and finishing seventh in the conference in the regular season. KU is led statistically by Whitney Berry (8g, 13a, 29p) and Ingrid Vidal (11g, 6a, 28p). Kaitlyn Stroud is the regular netminder and has recorded 69 saves and a 1.80 goals against average on the year.
Kansas faced three SEC teams in 2011, going 1-2 in those games. The Jayhawks beat Arkansas 4-1 while falling 7-2 to Florida and 2-1 to Tennessee in overtime. The teams have two more common opponents in Big 12 sides Texas and Iowa State. KU defeated the Longhorns 3-2 in double OT while Georgia stumbled 3-0 in its game vs. Texas at home in August. Both squads beat Iowa State, with Kansas downing the Cyclones 6-1 and Georgia handling ISU 2-0 on Sept. 4 in Minneapolis as part of its run to the Gold Classic title.
Mark Francis is in his 13th season as the head coach in Lawrence.
SERIES HISTORY, GEORGIA VS. KANSAS: Georgia owns the 2-0 edge over Kansas in the teams' limited all-time series history, earning a 3-0 decision over the Jayhawks in their first meeting back in 1999 and last season's 5-0 win in Athens. In that game Georgia got a pair of goals from both Susannah Dennis and Meghan Gibbons and one from Ashley Miller.
NEWFIELD IN THE NCAA: Sophomore Alexa Newfield ranks in the NCAA top-20 in five statistical categories, highlighted by her mark of seven game-winning goals, which rank tied for seventh in the nation. Newfield is currently tied for 17th in points per game (1.90), tied for 17th in points (38), tied for 20th in goals (15), and 20th in goals per game (0.750).
Newfield led the conference in goals, goals per game, points, points per game, shots, shots per game, and game-winners, and was fifth in assists on her way to first team All-SEC honors.
THE NUMBERS GAME: 11 players have scored goals and 16 have at least one point for Georgia in 2011 ... Georgia has allowed fewer than two goals in 12 of the last 17 games ... in four games this season the Bulldogs and the opposition have scored goals less than a minute apart (vs. Villanova, 59 seconds; vs. UNCG, 17 seconds; vs. South Carolina, 21 seconds; vs. Alabama [twice], 23 seconds and 50 seconds) ... the Bulldogs are 4-0-2 in overtime this season, with all four game-winners in those games either scored or assisted by Alexa Newfield ... Newfield has seven game-winning goals on the season, tying her for seventh place in Division I women's soccer ... Jenna Owens has assisted an Alexa Newfield goal four times this season, while Newfield has helped Owens once ... Newfield needs just two more points to break the single-season record in that category, currently with 38.
SPREADING THE WEALTH: Georgia has gotten goals from 11 different players through 20 games in what has shaped up to be a balanced offensive output so far in 2011. Paced by an SEC-best 15 goals for sophomore Alexa Newfield, four from Ashley Miller and three apiece for Meghan Gibbons and Madeline Barker, a total of 16 Georgia players have found the stat sheet for either goals or assists.
Balanced offense has been a trend in recent years, as last season 12 different players scored goals.
A MILESTONE IN 2011: The Georgia soccer team won its 200th all-time game on Oct. 7, 2011 vs. Mississippi State. Georgia entered the 2011 season with an all-time record of 191-117-27 and made sure to capture the milestone.
Playing its first season in 1995, Georgia Soccer earned its first win on Sept. 3, 1995, its 100th on Sept. 14, 2003, and No. 150 on Nov. 2, 2007.
In doing so, Georgia became just the fourth SEC program to win 200 games all-time. Florida, Vanderbilt, and Kentucky have already accomplished the feat. Additionally, it was the 10th Georgia team to win 200 games, the first since softball did so in 2002.
