Liz Slattery makes the most of her limited playing time.
The freshman midfielder entered Sunday’s match against Auburn in the 26th minute and made her presence known at James G. Pressly Stadium.
Slattery won possession in the midfield, saw junior forward Jillian Graff in the attacking third and spun a pass to her. Graff made the half-volley touch and sunk the ball into the net from 15 yards out.
Slattery earned her first career assist from Graff’s goal and cushioned the Gators’ lead en route to a 3-0 victory against the Tigers.
“That’s a pretty sophisticated ball that she played,” coach Becky Burleigh said. “It’s still not an easy goal for Jillian to finish, but it certainly sprung her to get that opportunity.”
It was not only Slattery’s assist that grabbed attention. She was dynamic in the midfield, gaining possession and creating opportunities in the opposing half.
“She won more 50-50 balls than the entire Auburn team,” Burleigh said. “She was at 11 or 12 just by herself, which is a pretty incredible stat.”
Although the 5-foot-5 freshman is not a physically imposing player, she consistently pressures opponents.
“She just really works hard to win those balls,” Burleigh said.
“She gets herself in a good position. She reads the ball well, and then what she can do in her technical ability is also important. She’s kind of working hard on both sides of the ball.”
Burleigh said after the team’s 2-1 double-overtime loss to South Carolina that she wants her players to show collective toughness.
Although fellow freshman Pamela Begic suffered an unspecified injury against Auburn, the Gators can look to Slattery and other midfielders for depth.
“Every single game, I try to get more and more minutes,” Slattery said.
“Every time I go in the game, I know it’s an opportunity to show that I can be on the field with everyone. When I get on the field I work as hard as I possibly can.”
In the 12 games she has made an appearance, Slattery has scored one goal and notched one assist — a less impressive stat line compared to the 26 goals and 13 assists she racked up in her junior year at Cincinnati Indian Hill High School.
“You come in here, and you’re with girls who are just as good, if not better than you, so it’s hard to adjust to that,” Slattery said.
“Getting my confidence up to where everyone else’s was, to the point where I knew I could play with them still and I could still be an impact on the team, has probably been the best thing for me.”
Freshman to play for national team: Freshman forward Savannah Jordan will be competing with the U.S. U-18 Women’s National Team in camps with the U-17 Women’s National Team in Lakeland Ranch from Oct. 13-19.
“It’s a great honor and a great opportunity,” Jordan said. “I’m excited to get into a new environment and kind of play with different players and see what I can do.
“I think it will help me bring new things to the team.”
Follow Michelle Provenzano on Twitter @mmprovenzano.
Liz Slattery battles for the ball during Florida’s 3-0 victory against Auburn on Sunday in James G. Pressly Stadium. Slattery recorded her first career assist against the Tigers.
