Kai Tsakiris Named SEC Freshman of the Week

A third Florida soccer player has been given a conference honor this month. Freshman midfielder, Kai Tsakiris, was named co-SEC Freshman of the Week.

The award comes after Tsakiris drew and converted a penalty kick against No. 17 Georgia in Friday night’s matchup in Athens. After two unanswered goals from Georgia, Tsakiris was able to score the first goal of the game and her third goal overall.

Between starting a new position, moving across the country, and playing at a new level, Tsakiris found the transition into college to be intense. Despite the change, she is optimistic about how her season has started.

“I am very, very happy about how I am doing. Of course, I can always be improving on little things,” Tsakiris said in an interview last week. “I’d like to be a little bit more confident in front of goal, but that’s just something I’m working on.”

With the goal against Georgia, Tsakiris has become Florida’s leading scorer. She also has two assists on the season. Tsakiris credits her success to both the mindset of her teammates and her own competitiveness and love for the game.

“I’m a very passionate person and that definitely travels into how I play.”

The other SEC Freshman Soccer Player of the Week is Gabi Poretto, a defender from Kentucky. She scored the game-winning penalty kick against No. 25 Alabama, an upset that brought Kentucky’s conference record to 3-1-0.

Tsakiris and Poretto will go head-to-head on Thursday as Florida hosts Kentucky. Florida is 0-2-2 in conference play and will look to score their first SEC victory of the season.

Kickoff is at 7 p.m. at the Donald R. Dizney Stadium.

Category: Gainesville, Gator Sports, Gators Soccer, SEC, Soccer