Florida Gators

NASHVILLE, Tennessee – Goals by three different Gators gave the University of Florida soccer team a 3-2 win at Vanderbilt Friday at the VU Soccer/Vanderbilt Complex. It was a drippy evening, with much of the match played in light rain.

Florida played under every possible scenario Friday – ahead, tied, trailing, tied and finally ahead for good.

The Gators' first goal started when junior Brooke Sharp looked up from the touchline to see space on the opposite side. She sent the ball to the far edge of the box. Freshman Sarah Troccoli caught up and then placed the ball in at the middle of the box for her fourth goal of the season.

Vanderbilt scored twice in just over a three-minute span to tie and then take the lead. The tap-in by Taylor Elliott off the assist from Simone Charley at 24:09 tied the match. Then Lydia Simmons put in another assist from Charley at 26:04 to give the Commodores a 2-1 lead.

The Gators tied the match when Savannah Jordan, in the center of the box but blocked, played the ball left for Sharp. Sharp put the ball in at the top right corner at 31:03 to finish first-half scoring.

The go-ahead goal started when freshman Melanie Monteagudo sent a ball across the top of the box to find Betsy Middleton just outside. With space, Middleton took the shot and scored from 22-yards to put the Gators ahead in the 56^th minute.

Worth Noting:

·         Sharp has now scored seven goals, with all coming in the last six matches. It was her fourth consecutive match with at least one goal

·         Troccoli scored her fourth goal of the season. It was second consecutive match with a goal, as she also scored Sunday at Florida International.

·         Middleton's goal tonight is her second of the 2015 and the goals have come on consecutive Friday nights.

Records:

Florida: 8-2-0, 2-1 SEC

Vanderbilt: 5-5-1, 1-2 SEC

What the Gators Said:

What adjustments were made for the second half?

“I think a big part of their attack is No. 12 (Simone Charley) – she's really dangerous. But I think she spent a lot of the second half chasing Claire Falknor around and having to defend. That took a little away from them offensively. So I give a lot of credit to Claire getting forward and occupying her.

“I thought our team adjusted really well to what they were trying to do. They were trying to pressure our backs and not let us play out of the back. I think we dealt with that pretty well.” - Florida head coach Becky Burleigh

On Middleton's goal:

I thought it was a good, heads up play. She did a great job of finishing it. That isn't an easy goal to score with the ball bouncing around like that. I thought she did a terrific job with it.” – Florida head coach Becky Burleigh

Preseason Conference Votes:

Florida was second in the 2014 Southeastern Conference final standings with a 9-2 record. VU was 12th in 2104 SEC action with its 2-7-2 record.

Florida – The Gators are picked to win the 2015 Southeastern Conference title.

VU – The Commodores are picked to finish 13^th in SEC in 2015.

Rankings:

Florida is ranked No. 9 on the September 22 National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) poll.

Next up:

Florida finishes its two-match SEC road swing Sunday at No. 13 Auburn. In a meeting between two Tiger teams Friday, Auburn defeated LSU 3-2 in double overtime.

Sunday's match streams on SEC Network + beginning at 2 p.m. ET or listen to Adam Schick's call of the match on GatorZone.com.

No. 9 Florida (8-2-0, 2-1 SEC) at Vanderbilt (5-5-1, 1-2 SEC)

Stadium: VU Soccer/Lacrosse Complex (259)

Weather: 66 degrees, light rains, winds 7 MPH, 92 % humidity

Scoring Summary:

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Shots: Florida 17; VU 9

Saves: Florida 2 (Kaylan Marckese 2); VU 4 (Christina Ogunsami 4)

Yellow card: Meggie Dougherty Howard/UF – yellow (53:04); Savannah Jordan/UF – yellow (79:20)