The Auburn soccer team advanced to the semifinals of the SEC tournament after defeating No. 16 South Carolina 3-2 in overtime.
Sophomore Ellie Leek was the hero of the game, equalizing in the 76th minute in a two-goal Auburn comeback to give the Tigers a chance to win, and also providing the clinching goal in penalty kicks. After 60 minutes, Auburn was down 2-0 before Kristen Dodson scored her fourth goal of the year in the 61st minute, and Leek followed just 14 minutes later to tie the match.
The Tigers' win is the first in the SEC Tournament since defeating LSU as the 10-seed before falling in the quarterfinals in 2013. Friday will be Auburn's first appearence in the semifinals since 2012.
"Our team has dealt with adversity all year long," coach Karen Hoppa said. "South Carolina is a great side. They finished all their chances early to go up 2-0, but a credit to our team and its character. They never quit. They fought back and battled together and found a way to survive and advance."
In 110 minutes of play, redshirt freshman Sarah Le Beau had four saves on the night with one miss against the Gamecocks in penalties. Courtney Schell scored on the first penalty kick, missed by South Carolina's Sophie Groff, to give Auburn the advantage for the remainder of the game and eventually the win.
Auburn advances to play the top-seeded Florida Gators Friday at 3:30 p.m. in the semifinals at the Orange Beach Sportsplex. The game will be televised on SEC Network.
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