By opening her Florida career with a five-goal offensive outburst in two games, Savannah Jordan has quickly made her name known in the Southeastern Conference.
The SEC rewarded Jordan for her performance, naming her Freshman Soccer Player of the Week, the league announced Monday.
The freshman forward scored two goals in Florida’s season-opening 3-1 victory against Florida Gulf Coast on Friday. She topped that performance with a hat trick in the team’s second game, a 3-1 win against Oregon State on Sunday.
Jordan praised her teammates following her debut weekend. Coach Becky Burleigh added that teamwork is what makes great goals.
"Nobody scores great goals without getting great services or without us creating good opportunities, and I think Savannah is well aware of that," Burleigh said Monday.
"She’s had some great play around her and yet her part in that is that she’s putting herself in good positions to score goals."
Jordan’s hat trick Sunday night was a feat few freshmen have accomplished for the Gators.
The only other UF players to rack up three goals in a game as freshmen were Andi Sellers in 1997 and Abby Wambach in 1998.
Burleigh said she does not expect Jordan to repeat her five-goal outpouring every weekend, but she believes the freshman can continue to be a cog in UF’s attack.
"Goal scoring is one of those things that’s sort of contagious; once you get a little confidence and feel like you can score, you feel like you can score more," Burleigh said.
"Right now, she’s obviously on a roll, scoring five goals in your opening weekend of your freshman year is pretty impressive."
Junior midfielder Annie Speese, who assisted on two of Jordan’s goals Sunday night, said the pair of weekend wins boosted the morale of a young team that lost playmakers Erika Tymrak, Jo Dragotta and Holly King to graduation.
"That’s really big because, obviously, it’s our first weekend," Speese said.
"We’re a new team. We lost five starters, five seniors that were really big leaders on the team, so for us to come out and, especially on Friday when we got scored on, having the composure to come back and get another one, it’s great."
Follow Michelle Provenzano on Twitter @mmprovenzano.
Freshman forward Savannah Jordan (10) eludes two Oregon State defenders in Florida's 3-1 win on Aug. 23 at James G. Pressly Stadium.
