Freshman midfielder Julie King dribbles the ball away from a Tennessee defender.: Auburn defeated Tennessee 2-1 last Sunday and pulled into a tie for first place in the SEC West with LSU. Amanda Irle / PHOTO STAFF
With just one game remaining, the Auburn soccer team has pulled into a tie with LSU for first place in the SEC’s western division.
The Tigers’ 2-1 win over Tennessee on Sunday and 1-0 win at Georgia on Thursday lifted the Tigers to a 10-7-2 overall record and 6-3-1 record in conference play.
Auburn now faces a must-win situation against visiting rival Alabama tomorrow night. LSU (12-3-1, 6-3-1 SEC) will take the West if both teams are still tied after their respective season finales, because the Bayou Bengals hold the tie breaker after LSU’s 2-1 win over Auburn earlier this month. LSU will face off against Arkansas (11-7-0, 4-6-0 SEC) at home tomorrow.
The wins did preserve Auburn a spot in the SEC tournament for the eighth straight season.
Freshman Katy Frierson, who was named Freshman of the Week for the second consecutive week Monday, scored her ninth goal of the season Thursday against Georgia.
Frierson fired a shot into the left side of the net from approximately 30 yards out in the 14th minute, and the goal proved to be the game-winner.
The Bulldogs had won four straight matches against Vanderbilt, Kentucky, Mississippi State and Ole Miss before falling to Auburn.
Senior Allison Whitworth had seven saves in the game four in the first half and three in the second, including a diving save to keep Georgia’s Marah Falle from tying the game with 17 minutes left.
The Tigers needed overtime to beat Tennessee on Sunday, as junior Gabi Rivera took a pass from Frierson and scored in the 106th minute for the win.
Whitworth had 10 saves and now holds two school records with 108 single-season saves and 332 career saves. Her efforts earned her SEC Defensive Player of the Week honors.
Earlier in the game, junior Rebecca Howell scored her fifth goal of the season off a pass from Frierson in the 25th minute.
In the 84th minute, Tennessee’s Mick Imgram’s free kick bounced off the goal post and found Kylee Rossi, who scored for the 13th time this season to tie the game at 1-1.
Tomorrow’s game against Alabama will begin at 7:30 p.m.
