Four Lady Vols pick up region honors

Senior Defender Keeley Dowling Receives Her Fourth-Straight First-Team Selection Fresh off a 2004 campaign in which the Tennessee soccer team registered a 17-5-2 overall record, picked up both the Southeastern Conference Eastern Division and regular-season titles and advanced to the program’s third-consecutive NCAA Sweet 16, four Lady Vols have been honored for their efforts with National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)/adidas All-Central Region selections.  All-America defender Keeley Dowling garnered her fourth-consecutive first-team nod while senior forward Lyndsey Patterson (third-team) received her second-straight region listing.  Midfielders Ali Christoph and Kayla Lockaby each picked up their first All-Region award with second-team honors.  Dowling, the two-time reigning SEC Defensive Player of the Year and a three-time NSCAA/adidas All-American, ended her stay at Tennessee as the program’s all-time leader in both matches played and started at 89, while ranking in a tie for fifth on the career goals chart with former Lady Vol Kendyl Michner (1997-99) by registering 25 goals.  The four-time All-SEC choice also completed her career knotted for the top spot in “golden goals” (three), second in match-winning goals (10) and fifth in overall points (65 on 25 goals and 15 assists). The Carmel, Ind., native served as the cornerstone of a sterling 2004 defensive effort that tied a UT season mark by allowing just 18 goals, while registering 11 shutouts and limiting foes to an average of just nine shots a match.  Dowling, a two-time Missouri Athletic Club Hermann Trophy semifinalist, remains one of 12 finalists for the Soccer Buzz Magazine National Player of the Year award. Tennessee’s most prolific offensive threat during the 2004 campaign and one of the program’s top goal scorers in history, senior midfielder Kayla Lockaby completed her career in the Orange & White fourth on both the all-time goal scoring list (26 goals) and the career points chart (67 points on 26 goals and 15 assists).  The Hamilton, Ohio, native led the Lady Vols with an impressive 10 goals and 23 total points last season and registered four match-winning goals to give her a Tennessee-record 11 for her career.  Among her most memorable goals of the season were a “golden goal” at 106:32 to down the then-No. 8 Florida Gators in Gainesville, Fla., and end UF’s 36-match home conference unbeaten streak and a match-winning tally at 44:57 off assists from Dowling and Sue Flamini in a “Senior Night” victory over rival Georgia (2-0). Perhaps the Lady Vols most dynamic player with her dazzling footwork and the ability to create solid offensive opportunities, Puyallup, Wash., native Lyndsey Patterson completed her days on “the Hill” in a tie with former Lady Vol Kim Patrick (2001-02) for sixth on the all-time Tennessee points list (64 points on 20 goals and 24 assists) after registering three goals and six helpers during the 2004 campaign.  The First-Team All-SEC choice registered the initial goal of the season for Tennessee in the 4-3 win over Duke by finding the back of the net at the 25:47 mark.  She also assisted on both goals in a 2-1 victory over Ole Miss and scored the match-winner to beat Vanderbilt (1-0) just 27 seconds into the teams’ regular-season meeting.  Patterson saved one of her best games of the season for the NCAA First Round as she scored the eventual match-winner at 57:22 and assisted on freshman Emily Redberg’s (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) late goal in a 2-0 victory over the Furman Lady Paladins. Sophomore Ali Christoph, a First-Team All-SEC selection, continues her rapid climb up the Lady Vol all-time assist chart with 18 helpers for the Orange & White to rank sixth overall.  The former Soccer Buzz Magazine Central Region Freshman of the Year tied rookie Genna Gorman (Lakewood, Colo.) for the team lead in assists during the 2004 campaign with eight, while ranking among the league leaders in helpers for most of the season.  She recorded a point in nine matches for Tennessee during the 2004 campaign and posted an assist in seven contests.  Some of Christoph’s highlights included a pair of helpers in the 4-3 season-opening triumph over Duke, and a goal and an assist in the 2-1 victory over Southern California.  She also dished an assist on Lockaby’s match-winning “golden goal” to beat Florida and served the ball to Dowling that the senior deposited in the net with four seconds remaining in regulation time to beat Kentucky, 1-0.  Dowling, Patterson and Lockaby completed their careers in the Orange & White as part of a senior class that registered a sterling overall record of 63-22-6 and posted four NCAA Tournament appearances, three NCAA Sweet 16 visits, three Southeastern Conference Eastern Division titles, two SEC regular-season crowns and two SEC Tournament championships, while helping Lady Vol Head Coach Angela Kelly lift the Tennessee program to national prominence.