Lady Vols defeat Alabama, stretch streak to 12

By News Sentinel staff
Published Sunday, October 25, 2009

The Tennessee women's soccer team clinched its 12th consecutive berth into the SEC tournament Sunday, as freshman Amy Harrison and senior Mick Imgram each scored goals to beat Alabama, 2-0 in Tuscaloosa.

Junior goalie Molly Baird led the Lady Vols (8-7-3, 4-4-2 SEC) with six saves and her seventh career shutout.

"We got a victory today when we really needed one," UT coach Angela Kelly said.

Following an Alabama (6-9-1, 2-6-1) header off a UT throw in, Harrison pounced on a quick-tapped pass by sophomore Chelsea Hatcher then blasted it in the back of the net from about six yards at 10:15 for the second goal of her career.

Imgram made it 2-0 at 75:26 from 12 yards. The goal was the league-leading 12th of the season for Imgram, the 25th of her career, which ties her for seventh all-time.

Tennessee wraps up the 2009 regular season Friday at Georgia.

Women's Tennis: Senior Caitlin Whoriskey has reached the finals of the ITA Ohio Valley Regionals in Cincinnati.

Whoriskey, the tournament's No. 1 seed, beat No. 3 seed Catherine Newman of Vanderbilt, 6-2, 6-2 to avenge Newman's 6-2, 4-6, 6-2 victory over Lady Vol Kata Szekely in the quarterfinals.

Whoriskey, who beat Megan Broderick of Kentucky 6-4, 6-4 in the quarterfinals, will play No. 2 Jackie Wu of Vanderbilt in the finals today.

Meanwhile, the No. 7 combo of junior Maria Sorbello and Szekely competed in the semifinals of the doubles main draw, losing to Wu and Chelsea Preeg, 8-3.

Baseball: Paced by a pair of home runs from junior outfielder Josh Liles, the White team held off a late rally by the Orange to pick up its first win in the Orange and White World Series, 37.93-36.62, as determined by the team's production scoring method.

"Although I thought we pitched well overall, we need to do a better job when we get behind in the counts," Tennessee coach Todd Raleigh said. "When our pitchers controlled the count, though, I thought we looked really strong."

Liles finished 3-for-5 with five RBIs. Sophomore Matt Ramsey also went 3-for-5 with three RBIs.

The seventh and final game will be Friday.

Men's Tennis: Two UT doubles team won Sunday to reach the semifinals of the ITA Ohio Valley Regional Championships in Bloomington, Ind.

Davey Sandgren and John-Patrick Smith defeated Charlie Ramsey and Leon Nasemann of Memphis, 8-2.

Boris Conkic and Ryne Williams claimed an 8-6 win over Louisville's Andrew Carter and Viktor Maksimcuk.

In singles, Williams' eight-match win streak was snapped by Eric Quigley of Kentucky, 6-3, 6-4. Matteo Fago lost 6-3, 7-6 to MTSU's John Peers.

Men's Golf: The Vols finished fifth in the UNCG Bridgestone Golf Collegiate at Greensboro, N.C.

UT finished at 3-over-par 861 for the two-day event, 18 strokes behind winner Georgia Tech.

Darren Renwick (70) and Robin Wingardh (74) were in a group tied for 15th place at 2-under 214.

Other Sunday scores were David Holmes at 73, Jay Vandeventer at 74 and Justin Walker at 78.