Annie Speese has been terrorizing opposing defenses every time she touches the ball.
However, an improvement of her skills without the ball is what has led to her recent success.
As No. 11 Florida (12-3, 5-1 Southeastern Conference) continues the remainder of its SEC schedule tonight against Ole Miss (5-8-1, 1-5 SEC) in Oxford, Miss., Speese will look to extend the torrid scoring pace she has been on the last month, scoring seven goals and four assists in nine games.
Before that streak, Speese, a freshman forward, had just one assist and no goals through the Gators’ first six games.
She broke through with three assists in UF’s 5-0 win against Florida Gulf Coast on Sept. 11, and she followed that performance by scoring both goals in a 2-0 win against Missouri.
Since then, Speese has notched a two-goal game against Kentucky with two more goals and an assist against Alabama last Sunday.
She said her increased productivity has not been due to technical improvements, but rather learning to become a better player off the ball in a system predicated on quick passing.
“We say receive-pass-offer,” Speese said. “So if we are trying to move the ball around as quickly as we can, we have to always be looking to get open for each other and have other options.”
She said that her ability to play off the ball has helped support teammates when they are making runs and has put her in a better position to score. Also, she has become an improved passer because she can see the field more clearly.
Florida coach Becky Burleigh said that Speese was already a strong technical player when she got to Florida, and she came from the same system the Gators run, the 4-2-3-1. Thus, learning to play without the ball was more important for Speese than any other aspect of her game.
Speese was always the go-to ball-handler in high school, but the forward had to learn to trust her teammates to get the ball back to her after she passes it off, Burleigh said.
“She has learned the nuances of the players she is playing with,” Burleigh said.
Junior midfielder McKenzie Barney said she has become a more effective player thanks to Speese’s strides.
“I love playing with her because she can see exactly the type of runs I want to make and the types of runs that aren’t really runs, but ones that I want to make to get the defender out of position,” Barney said.
“It takes an amazing soccer mind to realize that.”
Florida sophomore forward Annie Speese (center) tied the Gators' game against New Mexico on Sept. 9 with a right-footed kick in the 50th minute. Speese tore her right ACL during Florida's loss in the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season.
