Joe Kirt – Syndication Server

Mike Lyons named Lady Vols’ assistant coach

Tennessee announces Mike Lyons as assistant coach.

Tennessee soccer head coach Joe Kirt announced the addition of assistant coach Mike Lyons to his coaching staff.

Lyons joins the Lady Vols after serving as an assistant coach for Dayton’s men’s soccer in 2024. Dayton (14-3-3) won the Atlantic 10 Tournament championship and advanced to the third round of the NCAA Tournament.

He also served as an assistant coach with Virginia’s men’s soccer from 2022-23.

“We are incredibly excited to welcome Mike to our program,” Kirt said. “Mike’s experience as a player and coach will bring a new perspective to our staff and playing style.

“He is passionate and dedicated to players’ development and growth on and off the field. Mike is a great fit in our staff and team culture as we continue our pursuit of SEC championships and our ultimate goal of bringing a national championship back to Knoxville.”

Lyons joins Tennessee’s coaching staff that includes Kirt, associate head coach Jon Morgan and assistant coach Marty Baker.

Joe Kirt. Photo by Dan Harralson, Vols Wire

Joe Kirt announces Tennessee soccer signees

Lady Vols sign three soccer transfers from the SEC.

Tennessee soccer head coach Joe Kirt announced a trio of Lady Vol forward signees on Wednesday.

The Lady Vols signed Shae O’Rourke, Anaiyah Robinson and Kylee Simmons.

“We are incredibly excited to welcome Kylee, Shae and Anaiyah to Rocky Top this spring,” Kirt said. “Each are proven goal-scorers and All-Conference recipients in our league who will bolster a talented group of returners.

“Individually, they bring their own attacking personality on the ball and in the box, creating quality scoring opportunities for both themselves and their teammates. Each will have a significant role in our program as we expect to bring another SEC championship back to Knoxville!”

O’Rourke enters her redshirt junior season after playing at Texas A&M and South Carolina. She was sidelined in 2024 due to injury with the Aggies. O’Rourke totaled 11 goals and six assists in two seasons at South Carolina.

Robinson appeared in 21 games, including 12 starts, as a freshman at Arkansas in 2024. She recorded 11 goals and one assist for the Razorbacks.

Simmons transferred to Tennessee after playing three seasons at Missouri. She totaled 16 goals and eight assists in 45 games for the Tigers.

Four Lady Vols named to SEC preseason watch list

Four Lady Vol student-athletes named to 2024 SEC preseason watch list.

Tennessee will open its 2024 soccer season on Thursday at Indiana. Kickoff between the Vols and Hoosiers is slated for 8 p.m. EDT and can be watched on Big Ten Network+.

Ahead of the Lady Vols’ opening match, four Tennessee student-athletes were named to 2024 Southeastern Conference preseason watch list: Redshirt senior forward Jaida Thomas, junior midfielder Mac Midgley, graduate student forward Sammi Woods and sophomore forward Kate Runyon.

Tennessee advanced to the NCAA Tournament second-round in 2023 under head coach Joe Kirt.

Kirt enters his third season as the Lady Vols’ head coach. He was also an assistant coach for 15 seasons at Tennessee.

Kate Runyon. Photo by Dan Harralson, Vols Wire

Lady Vols announce 2024 spring soccer schedule

Lady Vols announce 2024 spring soccer schedule.

Tennessee head coach Joe Kirt announced the Lady Vols’ spring soccer schedule on Thursday.

Three matches will take place at Regal Soccer Stadium.

Admission for all spring matches at Regal Soccer Stadium will be free of charge. Restrooms at Regal Soccer Stadium will be open, but concessions will not be available during spring contests.

2024 Tennessee spring soccer schedule

Sunday, March 3 – Appalachian State
Saturday, March 23 – versus Alabama (Huntsville, Alabama)
Sunday, April 7 – Clemson
Saturday, April 13 – Wake Forest
Saturday, April 20 – at Murray State

Tennessee finished its 2023 season with a 9-7-4 record, advancing to the NCAA Tournament second-round for the tenth time in program history.

Lady Vols shut out Lipscomb

Tennessee soccer shuts out Lipscomb on the road.

Tennessee (2-0) defeated Lipscomb (0-2), 3-0, Sunday at Lipscomb Soccer Complex in Nashville, Tennessee.

Jordan Fusco, Keaton Mitchell and Kameron Simmonds scored goals for the Lady Vols. Maria Nelson and Ally Brown recorded assists for Tennessee.

“I’m very pleased with our performance today,” Tennessee head coach Joe Kirt said. “It was a great team win. We needed everyone today on a hot, Sunday afternoon. It’s difficult to win on the road, and today was no different. Lipscomb was organized and competed well. It took us a little bit to settle in, and we left a few chances out there, but we kept at it and eventually found the back of the net. Credit to our team for their mentality today, we competed at a high level and were dominant in our possession.

“We have a deep and talented team, with six different players scoring goals this week. We’ve had two good performances, which we will learn from and be better on Thursday night against ETSU back at Regal Stadium.”

Tennessee defeated California, 4-1, to kick off the 2023 season.

The Lady Vols return to Regal Soccer Stadium on Thursday versus East Tennessee State (7 p.m. EDT).

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Marty Baker joins Lady Vols’ soccer staff

Marty Baker joins the Lady Vols’ soccer coaching staff.

Tennessee announced the hiring of Marty Baker to the Lady Vols’ soccer coaching staff as an assistant on Thursday.

Baker served as an assistant coach at VCU during the previous four seasons.

He also served as a graduate manager at Tennessee in spring 2017 before being elevated to a volunteer assistant during the fall.

“We are incredibly excited to welcome Marty Baker back to our coaching staff where he will step back in and work closely with our goalkeepers,” Tennessee head coach Joe Kirt said in a press release. “Marty played a major role in the success of our goalkeepers and program in 2017 and 2018, developing UT standout goalkeeper Shae Yanez and helping prepare her for a successful professional career.

“He’s also distinguished himself at VCU, coaching goalkeeper Grace Young to All-Atlantic 10 First Team honors as the Rams claimed a regular season championship in 2021. Having spent time at UT as a student and on staff, Marty bleeds orange, and his passion for Tennessee is evident in everything he does!”

PHOTOS: Lady Vols soccer debuts Summitt Blue uniforms

PHOTOS: Lady Vols wear pink versus South Carolina

PHOTOS: Lady Vols soccer wears pink versus South Carolina

No. 18 Tennessee (10-4-2, 6-2-1 SEC) hosted South Carolina (10-3-4, 5-3-1 SEC) Sunday at Regal Soccer Stadium.

South Carolina defeated the Lady Vols, 6-1. Tennessee surrendered its first goal since Sept. 25 versus Kentucky. The Lady Vols entered Sunday’s contest having recorded five consecutive shutouts.

“We talked about it all year — it is both boxes, and we were not good enough in either of them today,” Tennessee first-year head coach Joe Kirt said after the game. “Our mentality and our competitive fight was not good enough in either box, and that was the difference in the game.

“If you look at the midfield and the overall stats, it was a pretty even game, our mentality was not good enough. We were not ready to compete well enough in both boxes. We did a lot of good things outside of that. We created a ton of chances against a really good team, but we did not have enough quality in our attacking box, and we were not tough enough in our defensive box.”

Tennessee wore pink jerseys versus the Gamecocks. October is breast cancer awareness month.

Below are photos of the Lady Vols in pink jerseys versus South Carolina.

Joe Kirt records first win as Lady Vols’ head coach

Joe Kirt records first win as Lady Vols’ head coach.

Tennessee won its first match of the 2022 season Wednesday.

The Lady Vols defeated Bowling Green, 4-0, before an announced crowd of 625 at Regal Soccer Stadium.

After a scoreless first half against the Falcons (0-2-1), Tennessee (1-2-1) tallied four times after halftime to secure Joe Kirt’s first victory as UT’s head coach.

Taylor Huff scored for the Lady Vols in the 52nd minute.

Jaida Thomas scored Tennessee’s next two goals, extending the Lady Vols’ advantage to 3-0.

Thomas scored in the 64th minute and tallied again approximately one minute later.

Huff was credited with assists on both of Thomas’ markers.

Jenna Stayart scored in the 75th minute. Mackenzie George earned an assist on the final goal of the match.

Tennessee outshot the Falcons, 22-4, in the match.

The Lady Vols recorded eight shots on goal, while Bowling Green had two of its scoring opportunities land on frame.

Goalkeepers Lindsey Romig and Ally Zazzara combined for a clean sheet. Romig, who started and was relieved in the 79th minute, had two saves in the match.

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Joe Kirt previews Lady Vols’ 2022 soccer season

Joe Kirt previews Tennessee’s 2022 soccer season.

Tennessee will kick off its 2022 season Aug. 18 at North Carolina.

Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. EDT between the Lady Vols and Tar Heels.

Tennessee defeated Notre Dame, 3-0, in an exhibition match Aug. 9. The contest was played in Louisville, Kentucky.

The Lady Vols will host Dayton in an exhibition match Saturday at Regal Soccer Stadium. Kickoff is slated for 2 p.m. EDT.

Tennessee’s first regular season home match will take place Aug. 21 against SMU.

Lady Vols defeat Notre Dame in exhibition match

Ahead of Saturday’s match against Dayton and prior to the 2022 season, first-year head coach Joe Kirt met with media and previewed the upcoming campaign.

A transcript of Kirt’s preview provided by the University of Tennessee is below.

Joe Kirt introduced as Lady Vols’ soccer head coach

Joe Kirt introduced as Tennessee’s soccer head coach.

Joe Kirt was formally introduced as Tennessee’s soccer head coach at a press conference Monday.

A longtime assistant with the Lady Vols, Kirt was promoted to replace Brian Pensky.

Pensky was named head coach at Florida State.

Kirt has been at Tennessee since 2007. In 15 seasons at Tennessee, Kirt has coached on two Southeastern Conference Tournament championship teams.

During his tenure, the Lady Vols have won a pair of SEC Eastern Division championships and appeared in the NCAA Tournament seven times.

As an assistant for Tennessee, Kirt has played vital roles in goalkeeper development, technical and functional development for field players, as well as constructing and implementing the program’s game model.

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