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Auburn’s Soccer Season Comes To An End With A 2-1 Overtime Loss To California In NCAA First Round
Heather Havron’s second-half goal sent the match into overtime
November 13, 2009

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Auburn’s soccer season came to a disappointing end on Friday night as it dropped a 2-1 overtime heartbreaker to California in the NCAA Tournament First Round at the Seminole Soccer Complex on the campus of Florida State. California netted the game-winner in the 98th minute to send Auburn home, finishing the season with a 10-9-3 record.

"We played great. I don’t think the shots (22-12 in favor of Cal) are indicative of the match at all, nor is the score, unfortunately" Auburn Head Coach Karen Hoppa said. "I thought the second half we completely dominated. We had a goal called back but I thought we really played well. They scored a good goal in overtime and unfortunately that’s the way those things go sometimes."

"It was a very even game. They won the first half and we won the second half. It came down to overtime. They made a great play and that’s all it takes in overtime is making one great play. It is a tough loss," Auburn sophomore midfielder and First Team All-SEC selection Katy Frierson said.

Lisa Kevorkian netted the game-winner, her eighth goal of the season, finishing off an Alex Morgan cross from five yards out to extend Cal’s (11-8-1) season at least until Sunday, where it will play top-seeded Florida State, a 4-1 winner over Southeastern Louisiana in the opening match.

Down 1-0 at the half, Auburn came out clicking on all cylinders at the start of the second period but couldn’t light the scoreboard until Heather Havron tied the game at 1-1. Auburn’s regular corner kicker on shots from the goalkeeper’s right, she bent in a shot in the 59th minute for her first career goal and her eighth point of the season. Mary Coffed earned the corner by taking the ball deep into Cal’s 18 and forcing a deflection off of a Cal back to set up Auburn’s sixth of nine corners in the match.

"Heather’s got a great corner. She is so consistent on them and she just did what she usually does and it went in for us. We had a lot of pressure in the box, a lot of numbers. It was a great goal," Frierson said.

Auburn seemingly took a 2-1 lead of its own in the 85th minute when Katy Frierson sent a corner into the box that Auburn headed in but a foul was whistled on Auburn, nullifying the tally and keeping it tied at a goal apiece. From the 82nd until the 87th minute, Auburn had four quality scoring chances with Coffed putting one on frame that Cal goalkeeper Gina Pellegrini saved, Caitlin King getting a shot blocked and one saves and the nullified goal.

Morgan put the first score on the board when she went 1v1 with Christine Schweer a step inside the 18, driving towards the center of the box before turning and firing in her 14th goal of the season in the games’ 32nd minute. The goal came on Cal’s eighth shot of the match and the fifth off the foot of Morgan, three of which went on frame. Morgan took six of Cal’s nine first-half shots and finished with 10 for the match.

Auburn took six first-half shots forcing Pellegrini into two saves, both coming in the first four minutes of the match as Auburn went on the offensive quickly but came up empty. Chelsea Yauch registered the first shot following a Frierson corner kick in the second minute and then Frierson got off her own shot two minutes later. Steph Fransoso, playing in her first match since Sept. 27 at Ole Miss, put a shot on frame in the 41st minute following a Havron corner but the Cal defense was able to step in front of it on the line, keeping Auburn from scoring the equalizer right before the half.

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SOUTH CAROLINA ADVANCES IN NCAA TOURNAMENT WITH 4-0 WIN OVER DAVIDSON
Sophomore forward Kayla Grimsley scores twice in the Gamecock victory

COLUMBIA, S.C. - South Carolina scored three goals within four minutes in the early part of the second half and a stingy defense allowed just three shots on the evening as the Gamecocks defeated Davidson 4-0 on Friday night in NCAA Women's Soccer First Round action at Stone Stadium.  The win is Carolina's first postseason victory in women's soccer history and advances the team to a Second Round matchup vs. Rutgers on Sunday, Nov. 15 with the tilt set to begin at 1 p.m.  South Carolina is now 18-3-2 on the year while Davidson ends the season with a 12-10-1 record.  The match was played in front of 3,813 fans, the largest attended women's soccer match in South Carolina history.

 
Kayla Grimsley tied a career-high with two goals, both coming in the second half and Brooke Jacobs and Samantha Diaz-Matosas each  recorded  a  goal  and  an  assist  to  lead  the  Gamecocks  on  offense.    Carolina  was  dominant  on  the  offensive  side  with  a  16-3 advantage in shots for the contest.

Jacobs would get the ball rolling for Carolina with a goal in the 30th minute of play.  An aggressive attack for Carolina paid off in the 30th minute as the junior forward gained possession and control of the ball and turned from 30 yards out drilling a shot into the high left corner giving Carolina the goal advantage

With a 1-0 lead, the Gamecocks attacked the Davidson goal early into the second half resulting in three more goals.  The first scoring opportunity in the second half resulted in a score and a 2-0 lead.   Samantha Diaz-Matosas launched a free kick into the box that saw Grimsley control and knock into the back of the net.  Diaz-Matosas then tallied her first goal of the game as she drove half the field to put in Carolina's third goal of the match.  From just inside outside the penalty area, Diaz-Matosas drilled a ball from 20 yards into the high right corner that went past Davidson goalkeeper Jessie Baxa.  The string climaxed at the 56th minute, as Grimsley was able to control a rebound from a shot by Jacobs and scored on the second attempt just inside the six-yard box.

South  Carolina  recorded  the team's 14th shutout of the season.  Junior goalkeeper Mollie Patton played all 90 minutes to record a shutout in goal.  Despite the loss, Baxa was stellar in goal for the Wildcats as she finished with seven saves.

Carolina was on the attack the entire night and strung together many opportunities in the first half before Jacobs' first goal.  Solid play by Davidson goalkeeper Jessie Baxa kept Carolina off the scoreboard through the first third of the match.  Kim Miller put the first shot on goal for the Gamecocks with a direct shot from 12 yards out on net in the fifth minute of play that was denied by Baxa.  Carolina would add a second shot in the 11th minute as Lindsey Small drove one from 30 yards out that went above the crossbar. 

The third shot of the game came at the 13th minute as a cross by Grimsley found Diaz-Matosas just outside the "six" only to see her shot saved by Baxa.  Diaz-Matosas almost got another one at 17:47 as a cross from Jacobs found her inside the "six."  Diaz-Matosas' header went a little high and just above the crossbar.  Kortney Rhodes had a dangerous opportunity for Carolina at the 23rd minute.  Off Miller's corner kick, the Gamecocks kept the ball alive and it bounced around the penalty area with Rhodes getting a good look at the goal from 10 yards out and a shot just wide of the far post.   Grimsley found her way in at 24:08 only to be denied by Baxa.  A long service ball into the penalty box also saw Blakely Mattern almost end up with a goal at 24:53 only to see Baxa make her fourth save of the half.  Baxa was credited with another save on a strong opportunity for Carolina at 27:49.  This time Baxa denied Small, who put one on net from eight yards out.

It would be Jacobs that found the back of the net first on her goal at 29:02, her fifth goal of the year.  She nearly had a nearly had a second goal right before the end of the first half as she put another shot on goal from 10 yards out only to see Baxa come up with a diving save with just 30 seconds remaining.  South Carolina dominated possession in the first half with an 11-1 advantage in shots.

Baxa ended the half with five saves for Davidson.

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Georgia Soccer Advances With 3-0 Win Over UNCW

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – The Georgia soccer team got two goals from sophomore Ashley Miller en route to a 3-0 win over UNC Wilmington Friday night in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at the University of North Carolina’s Fetzer Field.

The win advances the Bulldogs (15-5-1) to the second round Sunday at 1 p.m. where they will square off against the No. 1 seeded Tar Heels.

Tonight’s shutout was Georgia’s first blank sheet in an NCAA Tournament game in program history, while the team limited the Seahawks to just one shot on the evening.

"It dictates a lot for the team who scores that first goal," Miller said. "We were just trying to get that in. They gave us a lot of time to turn. It just went in and it takes a lot off our team when we do that."

Georgia immediately set the tone of the contest, winning loose balls and controlling the tempo from the first whistle.

The Bulldogs had several chances to score early, and struck first at the 28:08 mark in the first half when Miller took the ball all the way in from the top and beat three defenders and the keeper to put Georgia up 1-0 with her shot into the bottom right corner.

UNCW had a few late chances to tie it but couldn’t find the back of the net as Georgia kept the lead heading into the half.

At around the 55 minute mark in the contest, the Seahawks had perhaps their biggest chance of the evening when Stephanie Rose had a wide open look but let the ball get too far in front of her and Michelle Betos was able to control it for the Bulldogs.

Just like that, Georgia countered down the other end as Patterson won a loose ball off a deflection and sent it past UNCW keeper Caitlin Hunter for Georgia’s second goal. It was Patterson’s team-high 11th goal of the season.

Less than a minute later, Miller struck again as she took a pass from Natalie Farley and beat the keeper for the 3-0 lead with her second of the day and sixth of the year.

With that goal, Miller became just the fourth Bulldog in history to score two goals in an NCAA Tournament game, the first since two Georgia players did so in their first round win over Alabama A&M in Athens.

The Bulldogs were able to keep up the intensity on the defensive end and limit UNCW to just the one shot, while taking eight of their own. As time expired, UGA maintained the three-goal edge and moves on to Sunday’s second round contest.

This weekend was a homecoming for assistant coach Robin Confer, who was a standout for the Tar Heels from 1994-97.

This postseason appearance was the first for the 2009 CAA champion Seahawks.

Georgia is now 5-6-1 all-time in the tournament, including 5-2 in the first round.

"I'm excited that we have advanced," said head coach Patrick Baker. "Scoring three goals and pitching a shutout is very important. I don't think they've been shutout in well over a month. I thought Ashley Miller was really dynamic tonight with two goals. We told Carrie [Patterson] at halftime that she had to use her speed and athleticism, and she definitely used that in scoring the second goal."

"I don't think we were sharp, but the biggest thing is just advancing. Were going to have to play a lot better and have better possession across the board on Sunday to stand a chance. The first step is done. Now we just have to recover and prepare. UNC Wilmington had a great season and they have the right blend of experience and youth. I'm sure they will be back in the NCAA Tournament in the near future."

The Bulldogs are now set for Sunday’s match-up with UNC, which is 3-0 all-time against Georgia in the series. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at Fetzer Field.

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LSU SOCCER CRUISES INTO NCAA SECOND ROUND WITH BIG WIN, 7-0

BATON ROUGE – All-American midfielder Malorie Rutledge netted a hat trick, including two goals in the first seven minutes of the match, to lead the 10th-ranked LSU soccer team to an easy 7-0 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Friday to advance to Sunday’s second round of the NCAA Tournament at the LSU Soccer Complex.

"We’re pleased with the result," said LSU head coach Brian Lee. "We’re pleased with the way we played, and we’re pleased that we were able to rotate so many players throughout the game."

Hosting a regional for the first time in program history, the Tigers wasted no time in opening the scoring as Rutledge took a pass from Courtney Alexander and rifled a shot past Arkansas-Pine Bluff goalkeeper Chelsea Klein just 2:06 into the contest.

Rutledge, the two-time SEC Offensive Player of the Year and Hermann Trophy candidate, turned up the pressure on the Golden Lions’ back line and scored her second goal of the match in the seventh minute with a shot from eight yards on a perfect centering pass by senior Melissa Clarke.

The Tigers outshot their opposition by a 16-0 margin in the first half and earned 12 corner kicks while limiting Arkansas-Pine Bluff without a shot or a corner kick. Klein recovered from the two early goals to make nine saves in the period and close out the first half with a 2-0 deficit.

"One of our goals was to try to go wide and get on the end of services when they packed the box. I think we executed that in the first half," Rutledge said. "We really wanted to keep pushing and get that third goal before halftime, but unfortunately for us we were not able to do that. We came back out in the second half and were able to put it away."

LSU came out firing once more in the second half and quickly put the game out of reach and pick up its second NCAA Tournament victory in school history.

Rutledge completed the hat trick just five minutes into the second half when she blistered a strike from just outside the penalty area that found the net inside the right post.

The hat trick was the second of Rutledge’s All-America career and LSU’s second hat trick of the season. Freshman forward Carlie Banks also scored a hat trick in the Tigers’ dominating 6-0 win over then No. 8-ranked Georgia in their SEC opener back on Sept. 25.

Midfielder Kellie Murphy accounted for LSU’s next two goals, finishing a pass from Carlie Banks and then connecting on a header following a well-placed cross from Alexander. The two goals resulted in a goalkeeper change for the Golden Lions, but just 30 seconds later Alexander notched a goal of her own while firing a strike from the top of the box that went under the legs of backup goalkeeper Bre-Ann Laypoole.

The scoring concluded with a goal from senior striker Rachel Yepez, who dribbled through the Arkansas-Pine Bluff defense fired a right-footed shot from 12 yards out that gave LSU its highest goal total of the season.

"As we started rotating substitutions in the first half, our level of play dropped off," Lee said. "We had a little chat at halftime, and I thought we were much better in the second half. Each time we brought on a sub they raised the level of play rather than keeping it the same."

LSU was relentless on the offensive end through the match while attempting 32 shots and scoring on seven of 21 shots on goal. The Tigers also attempted 16 corner kicks on the night.

But the Tigers’ back line was equally as impressive while holding Arkansas-Pine Bluff without a shot or a corner kick in 90 minutes of action. The ability to relax with facing a consistent attack in the match allowed the defense to rest for Sunday’s second-round match with Texas A&M.

"It helped us a lot," said senior defender Chelsea Potts. "I know a lot of the backs didn’t actually get subbed out but we still got to rest when we were on the field. We weren’t running as much. It was good rest for all of us."

With the win, LSU (15-4-4) tied a school single-season record with its 15th victory of the season. It also marked the 50th win in the careers of LSU’s senior class, a fitting milestone for a class that has transformed the LSU program into a championship contender during its four seasons in Baton Rouge. No other senior class has won more than 44 games during its tenure.

LSU will take on Texas A&M in the second round at 1 p.m. Sunday at the LSU Soccer Complex. The Aggies earned a spot in the second round by defeating Memphis 3-1 Friday afternoon.