By: by Matthew Farhadi
Tournament Guide
A-Sun TV Link (Free Video Coverage)
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KENNESAW, Ga. – As future Baseball Hall of Famer Derek Jeter once said during his dynasty years with the Yankees, “We just want to win. That's the bottom line. I think a lot of times people may become content with one or two championships, but we don't really reflect on what we've done in the past. We focus on the present.”
That is the same mindset the Kennesaw State women’s soccer team will be taking into the 2010 Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament which begins on Saturday night when they will host East Tennessee State in a crucial first round matchup.
Kennesaw State comes into the tournament as the defending champions and winners of two of the last three A-Sun conference tournaments, but this tournament poses a new challenge for the Owls.
Saturday will mark the first time the Owls have ever played in the first round of the A-Sun Conference Tournament since joining the league in 2005. The Black and Gold come in as the No. 4 seed, while the Buccaneers locked up the No. 5 seed on the last day of the regular season.
Kennesaw State has the advantage in several categories, including the head-to-head playoff record against East Tennessee State. The Owls defeated the Buccaneers in the 2007 Conference Tournament Semifinals by a score of 2-0. Senior
Sadjr Williams is the only current Owl that played in that match. Also, in A-Sun Tournament history the No. 4 seed is 5-2-5 all-time against the No. 5 seed.
The Owls and Buccaneers are already pretty familiar with each other as the two teams played each other just two weeks earlier. That matchup resulted in the only tie in conference play for the Black and Gold this season as the match ended in a 1-1 tie.
East Tennessee State opened the scoring in the 10th minute of the match as Jessica Huntington took a ball that got through the Owls’ defense and rifled it past Kennesaw State goalkeeper
Staci Pugh on the lower left side for a 1-0 lead. The Black and Gold maintained possession on East Tennessee State’s side of the field for most of the second half, and the Owls finally caught a break in the 86th minute. Kennesaw State was awarded a penalty kick, and freshman
Alma Gardarsdottir drilled a shot towards the lower right side of the goal that slipped underneath Gaughan to tie the match at 1-1. The teams played two overtime periods, but no one could score so the game ended in a tie.
Head Coach Rob King knows the challenge that lies ahead for his team, but he feels they are coming off a good week of practice and that they will be ready.
“We're looking forward to set things straight starting tomorrow against ETSU. It should be a hotly contested match as we're both playing to keep our seasons alive. We've had very good training sessions this week, and are confident we'll be ready for the game.”
The winner of this match will move on to the semifinals in Jacksonville, Fla. for a date against No. 1 seeded Jacksonville on Nov. 4.
Kick-off is scheduled for 7 p.m., and for the first time this season A-Sun TV is free for all viewers so you can follow the Owls all tournament long. A link for A-Sun TV is posted at the top of the story.
