Fallyn Baker stood at the 15-yard line on the Powell football field, hands on her hips, waiting for the ball to come her way.
Fortunately for Bearden soccer's freshman goalkeeper, the bulk of the roster from the 2025 TSSAA Class AAA state title teamis back. The offense held the ball for the majority of the Lady Bulldogs' 3-0 win over Powell on Aug. 25, while the defense kept the pressure off her.
Although Baker didn't see much action in her second career varsity start, she gained confidence by just being on the field.
"Well, the first time I was very nervous," Baker told Knox News. "That was pretty nerve-wracking, especially playing with all these people that are fantastic. And then playing against teams that are amazing. Now, I'm a little more
adjusted and calm. I think I'm connecting better with my team and not feeling so much pressure and making 100 mistakes."
Bearden (2-0) has become the premier girls soccer program in the Knoxville area, and one of the best in Tennessee, with four state championships in five consecutive appearances. Last season, the Lady Bulldogs surrendered just nine goals, largely due to elite goalkeeper and the 2025 state tournament MVP, Sophie Keener.
Keener tore her ACL playing flag football in the spring. While she hopes to come back in October, Bearden coach Ryan Radcliffe needed an immediate solution.
So, he turned to a freshman. A talented one, though, with SEC basketball DNA. And so far, she's yet to allow a goal.
"I think she's got the mentality," Radcliffe said about Fallyn Baker. "Her dad is a former Tennessee basketball player, Del Baker, and her brother was a big basketball player at Bearden too. It's kind of like, and I would say this all the time with the (Nyla and Jayla) Blue sisters, they've got the genes.
"Athletically, you look at her and you're like, 'Woah, that's a big girl.' But what I've been most impressed with is her mentality and wanting to get better every day."
Despite standing by her lonesome watching her teammates press the attack, Baker isn't working all by herself. Keener has been in her ear all offseason, helping in any way she can.
"She came in and definitely filled the role pretty well," Keener said. "Better than I was expecting. She's pretty good and I can't wait to see how much she grows, especially since she's just a freshman."
Baker's face lit up at the mention of the TSWA All-State keeper.
"Yes, big time," Baker said about how much Keener has helped. "In practice, she'll correct me a lot. Obviously I'm not going to be perfect. She'll correct me on things that I need to work on outside of practice, during practice, in drills. She is very encouraging off the field too."
Bearden has a tough schedule before hitting District 4-3A play hard in mid-September. Radcliffe believes Baker will be ready when the competition really counts.
"Fallyn looks the part, for sure," he said. "She's coming along strong. Credit to her."
Bearden finding replacement for Blue sisters
For the first time since 2019, Radcliffe's Bearden squad will not have a Blue sister on the field. Both helped deliver numerous state championships and national recognition. Both now play for Tennessee women's soccer.
"It's going to take some time for us to adjust," Radcliffe said. "Obviously, they made their mark. We scored 87 goals last year: 50 of them were between Tyler Roth and Jayla Blue. As a team, we only lost three starters, but in terms of production, we had two players that we're trying to figure out how we can make up for that."
In two wins over Oak Ridge and Powell, Bearden has had six different players score a goal.
That's Radcliffe's plan.
"Collectively is our answer," he said. "I think we've got enough pieces, especially young pieces, that can come in. I'd love to see a new goal scorer every night, because I think this team has the ability to do that."
Wynton Jackson covers high school sports for Knox News. Email: wynton.jackson@knoxnews.com
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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Fallyn Baker, daughter of former Tennessee basketball's Del Baker, debuts for Bearden
