Auburn (5-2-2, 1-0-1 SEC) fired 19 shots on the night, but it wasn’t until the 83rd minute that the breakthrough came. After sustained pressure on the Aggies, Woodson found space near the post and finished cleanly off a pass from midfielder Erin Flurey to put the Tigers on top.
“Better late than never,” head coach James Armstrong said. “It was one of those games where we were creating lots of chances again. It can be frustrating to not see any of those go in, but thankfully, our girls kept doing what they were doing to create those opportunities, and they never stopped believing that we’d get one in the back of the net.”
The Aggies (3-3-3, 0-2-0 SEC) managed just a pair of first-half shots and finished with only three for the match, struggling to solve Auburn’s pressure in midfield. By halftime, the Tigers had already out-shot A&M 12–2 and earned four corner kicks to the Aggies’ zero. Woodson nearly struck inside the opening minute, but her shot was denied by goalkeeper Maysen Veronda, who went on to finish with eight saves. Freshman forward Jordyn Crosby peppered the goal with multiple chances, including a 20th-minute shot off a corner and another in the 30th. Grace Ivey forced another diving stop in the 25th, while both Flurey and Layla Sirdah added attempts from distance that were smothered.
Texas A&M’s best looks in the first half came from Trinity Buchanan in the eighth minute and Holly Storer in the 21st, but goalkeeper Ayana Yapo and Auburn’s back line held firm, with Yapo adding another key stop just before halftime to keep it level.
Several Tigers had big roles in helping Auburn maintain possession throughout the game. Freshman forward Crosby used her pace to stretch the Aggie back line and create scoring chances in the final third. Flurey controlled the tempo in the center of the pitch, linking passes and keeping Auburn’s attack moving forward. Ivey pressured the defense with goal-seeking runs and tested the goalkeeper with two corner kicks and a second-half shot that nearly put Auburn ahead earlier.
The second half brought more of the same pressure. Auburn opened with a corner in the 46th minute, and both Dylan Driver and Taylor Chism put shots on frame that were stopped by Veronda. Chism had another dangerous look in the 73rd minute, while substitutes Asha Means and Gracie Brown each forced saves as Auburn piled up chances.
The breakthrough finally came in the 83rd minute when Flurey found Woodson, who rifled her shot into the corner of the net for the game-winner. A&M nearly equalized minutes later off a corner, with Leah Diaz firing toward goal, but Yapo and the Tiger defense stayed composed to see out the shutout.
“It was a long run I made. I was just trying to get into the box, so I could get something on it,” said Woodson. “It was a really good ball from Erin. We had a lot of shots, but we were having trouble putting them into the back of the net, so I was just trying my best to get on the end of it to put one away.”
Despite a slow start in the opening 10 minutes, where Auburn struggled to keep the ball, the Tigers settled in quickly and dominated possession. By the final whistle, Auburn had held a commanding 19-3 edge in shots and a 6-1 advantage in corners.
The win gives Auburn momentum as SEC play continues. The Tigers return to action this Sunday at Mississippi State, looking to build on the offensive determination that finally delivered against the Aggies.
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