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No. 8 Florida Soccer Defeats Tennessee 1-0 2OT in SEC Tournament Opening Round

ORANGE BEACH, Ala. - A golden goal by sophomore Lindsay Thompson sends the No. 8 University of Florida soccer team (15-4-2, 8-1-2 SEC) to the Southeastern Conference Tournament's semifinal round. The Gators defeated Tennessee (8-9-3, 4-5-2 SEC) 1-0 2OT in the opening round of the SEC Tournament held Wednesday at the Orange Beach SportsPlex.

These two teams also played a tight match in the their regular season meeting on Oct. 16 in Knoxville, Tenn. Florida also needed late dramatics in that match, as sophomore Tahnai Annis hit the tying goal in the 86th minute. The match ended in a 2-2 double overtime tie. Florida expected, and got, another battle on Wednesday although UF Head Coach Becky Burleigh thought the Gator effort was much stronger in this meeting.

"We knew it was going to be very direct soccer and a physical matchup - it was what we expected," Burleigh said. "What we did a better job of this time is to match them physically and play with a little more composure. There was no comparison between this match and the first match in Knoxville. We did a better job controlling the ball and creating opportunities."

The game-winning opportunity was created early in the second overtime. Annis' corner kick was banging around at the top of the box before freshman Brooke Thigpen made the decisive touch out to Thompson on the left side of the box.

"We got a corner and after the corner it kind of got cleared out. Brooke Thigpen ended up with the ball. She dribbled it back into the box and she had a really good cross," Thompson said. "It kind of slid through everybody. I was at far post and just hit it in.

"It felt awesome - we had been so close throughout the game," she continued. "To finally end the game just felt amazing."

For Thompson, it was her second golden goal winner this season, as she hit the penalty kick to give UF a 2-1 OT win versus Kentucky in Florida's opening match of the SEC season. Thompson leads the Gators this season with 10 goals and 22 points.

UF turned in its fifth straight shutout Wednesday, with Tennessee being the last team to score on the Gators. UF goalkeeper Katie Fraine thought the Gator backline aided her Wednesday in limiting the Lady Vols opportunities.

"The pressure is always there in a championship tournament game when you know that if you lose, you are done," Fraine said. "Our defense did an absolutely amazing job of limiting their opportunities, which makes my job easy."

Fraine did have some testers Wednesday, including a quick shot by UT senior Mick Imgram after she received a centering pass in the 23rd minute. In the 62nd minute, Emily Dowd had a clear line to the goal after Fraine's goal kick was sent right back into the Florida box. Dowd looked to have a clear path to the goal as Fraine was off her line, but UF senior Lauren Hyde aided the play by forcing her to run at an angle and Dowd's shot was wide of the near post.

Fraine turned in four saves, while UT's Molly Baird tallied nine saves.

Wednesday's SEC Tournament Results
Florida - Tennessee 1-0 2OT
LSU def. Vanderbilt 4-2
Auburn def. Mississippi 2-1
South Carolina def. Georgia 3-2

The Gators now meet the winner of tonight's match, No. 15 South Carolina on Friday, Nov. 6 at 8:30 p.m. (ET).

Live streaming video of Friday's match can be found on www.GatorZone.com or www.SECSports.com. Friday's match can also be heard live on AM 850 WRUF or via simulcast on Gainesville/Ocala Cox Cable channel 946 and www.GatorZone.com. Adam Schick will cover the action Friday.


Scoring Summary: 1st 2nd OT1 OT2 Final
UT 0 0 0 0 0
Florida 0 0 0 1 1

Scoring:
UF: Lindsay Thompson (Brooke Thigpen) 101:20

Goalkeepers:
Minutes Saves GA
UT Molly Baird 101:22 9 1
Florida Katie Fraine 101:22 4 0


Statistical Summary: UT UF
Shots 10 13
Shots on goal 4 10
Saves 9 4
Corner Kicks 5 6
Fouls 9 14
Offside 3 1