After a chaotic regular season that saw Auburn soccer play in seven overtime periods, face a 25-day hiatus due to COVID postponements, and a stretch of four games in 11 days to end the season, head coach Karen Hoppa and the Tigers are ready for anything when it comes to the SEC Tournament.
“Obviously, last couple of games we didn’t get the result we wanted, but I look back over these eight games and think we’ve grown a ton,” Hoppa said. “I think our team got a lot better. We’re obviously really young. At times, we have seven or eight freshmen on the field at once, and I think we’ve learned a lot. We’re really excited to start a new season, if you will, with everyone at 0-0 and go down to Orange Beach.”
While the SEC Tournament kicked off on Friday, Auburn’s regular-season record was good enough to earn them a first-round bye. The Tigers will play Sunday at 5 p.m. CST against Georgia.
Sunday's game will be the second meeting between the two teams this fall. Even with a shortened season, the Tigers and Bulldogs squared off in the regular season, with Auburn toppling Georgia for a 1-0 win.
With a large number of overtime periods this season and ending the regular season on an 11-day four-game stretch, the first-round bye was much-needed for Hoppa’s team.
“We’re happy we got a first-round bye,” Hoppa said. “We needed it more than anyone else, having played four games in 11 days here to wrap up the season.”
Low-scoring games have been a common occurrence for the Tigers this season, as they’ve allowed just seven goals all season, tied for second-best in the SEC. The Tiger defense has proved to be a strong suit this season, but going into the tournament, Hoppa knows the offense needs to take a step forward.
“We’ve gotta be sharper in our passing than we have been the past two games,” Hoppa said. “I think we’ve turned over too many balls in the last two games, so we’ve gotta be able to connect better. We’ve gotta still, I keep saying it, finish our chances. That’s certainly been a source of frustration for our team. I think we just need one [goal], and I think we can bust it open with this offense.”
Scouting Georgia will be a challenge for Auburn as the Bulldogs' last match against Missouri was canceled because of COVID-19 issues on Georgia's team. Regardless of the outcome in the SEC Tournament, Hoppa is proud of her team for navigating a fall season like no other.
“Really, really proud of ‘em and how they handled themselves outside of soccer that’s been the big thing," Hoppa said about her players. "The way they’ve handled themselves socially, they have really embraced creating a bubble and embraced the idea of protecting each other. Their social responsibility I’ve been really proud of and then on the field too how we’ve grown.”
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