Losing a game in penalty kicks is hard enough.
Losing in the first round of the Southeastern Conference tournament as the No. 2 seed doesn’t make it much better.
No. 8 Florida (14-4-1, 9-2 SEC) fell to Tennessee (10-9-2, 4-6-1 SEC) by way of penalty kicks 5-4 in Wednesday’s quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament in Orange Beach, Alabama. The final score was 1-1.
It was a hard-fought match. The penalty kick round followed two ten-minute overtime periods in which neither team scored. Not even one round of penalty kicks was enough — there needed to be two.
At the beginning of the match, Tennessee was quick to get on the board and scored in the third minute off of a goal from senior Cheyenne Spade. Florida would respond just before halftime with a goal from senior Annie Speese in the 44th minute.
Speese missed Florida’s last game against Vanderbilt and wasn’t expected to play many minutes. She played 77 minutes on Wednesday.
This was as even a match as the Gators have played all season, in part because Florida didn’t look as sharp as it has proven to be.
"I still think we have some mental lapses defensively, it’s just basically getting caught ball watching," coach Becky Burleigh said. "We have to really make sure that we have better communication, better focus on not getting caught just watching the ball."
Burleigh said Florida’s mistakes are fixable and the Gators will work to fix them in their preparation time before the NCAA tournament begins next week.
A big component of Wednesday’s match was the physicality and intensity between the two sides.
In a game that saw four yellow cards and one red card, the officiating crew was kept busy, not to the liking of the players and coaches.
"We don’t really have control over that," Burleigh said regarding the management of Wednesday’s game by the officials. "It was a game that had a lot of stoppages. It felt like we were playing basketball quarters."
Florida was disappointed after the early exit from the tournament on Wednesday, but it knows the NCAA Tournament still lies ahead. The Gators will take advantage of the opportunity to get some rest and look to bounce back in their next tournament.
"The SEC Tournament is great for teams that need wins to get in the NCAA Tournament," Burleigh said. "For teams like us, it’s an opportunity to play more games but not necessarily helpful in the big scheme of things."
Follow Alex Maminakis on Twitter @AlexMaminakis
Annie Speese (13) dribbles the ball down the field during Florida's 2-0 win against South Florida on Sunday at Donald R. Dizney Stadium. Speese scored both of UF's goals.
