ORANGE BEACH, Ala. – Lindsay Thompson scored all three Florida goals Friday night after Georgia took an early 1-0 lead and the seventh-ranked Gators earned a 3-1 victory that put them into Sunday’s championship game of the Southeastern Conference Women’s Soccer Tournament at the SportsPlex.
The Gators, who won the SEC championship with their 1-0 victory last week at South Carolina, won for the seventh straight time and will meet up with the Gamecocks Sunday at 3 p.m. (ESPNU) in the championship game. South Carolina (14-4-4) moved into the title match with a 4-3 shootout victory after battling to a 1-1 double-overtime tie with Louisiana State.
On a cool and clear evening, Georgia (11-6-4) broke out to a 1-0 lead at 6:02 of the first half when Alexa Newfield directed a crossing pass from Rebekah Perry past Florida keeper Katie Fraine.
But Thompson, a 5-foot-8 junior forward who played at Lakewood Ranch in Bradenton, got the Gators even just 27 seconds later when Erika Tymrak broke her in on the right wing and Thompson blasted a shot from 12 yards past Georgia goalie Ashley Baker.
Thompson put the Gators in the lead for good at 25:32 when passes from Tymrak and McKenzie Barney set her up in the middle and her 7-yard shot made it 2-1.
Florida coach Becky Burleigh replaced Fraine with Brooke Chancey in the second half, and Chancey came up big with four saves. For the game, each team took 5 corner kicks and Georgia had a 13-12 edge in shots. But the Bulldogs had seven of their shots on goal, with Fraine making two saves and allowing one goal in addition to Chancey’s four saves. Baker, meanwhile, made one save in each half.
Thompson completed her hat trick at 87:09 of the second half when Tymrak passed the ball ahead and Thompson scored on a running 12-yard shot for the final goal of the night.
No. 2 South Carolina 1, No. 6 Louisiana State 1 (2OT) (South Carolina wins 4-3 on penalty kicks): For the second straight night, South Carolina (14-4-4) advanced in the tournament by virtue of a shootout win.
SEC Offensive Player of the Year Kayla Grimsley put South Carolina into the lead when she split the defense and beat LSU keeper Megan Kinneman with her 12th goal of the season at the 28:46 mark of the first half. But Louisiana State tied the match in the second half at 77:30 when Carlie Banks hammered home Addie Eggleston’s crossing pass from the right wing to the far post, beating Georgia goalie Mollie Patton.
Having gone to penalty kicks just one night before, the same five takers went to the mark for the Gamecocks, and four out of five converted. Brittiny Rhoades, Kortney Rhoades and Kelsey Barr put the Gamecocks in position to win it at 3-3 after Patton was able to save a penalty kick for the second straight night. After the final Tiger sailed her shot high, Grimsley scored the winning kick again to send Carolina into the title match.
SEC WOMEN’S SOCCER TOURNAMENT
Orange Beach (Ala.) Sportsplex / Nov. 3-7, 2010
Final seedings
Rn/Team SEC record, Points, GD (GF-GA), GF
1. Florida 9-1-1, 28 points, +21 (27-6), 27
2. South Carolina 8-2-1, 25 points, +19 (26-7), 26
3. Tennessee 7-3-1, 22 points, +4 (15-11), 15
4. Georgia 5-3-3, 18 points, +6 (13-7), 13
5. Auburn 5-4-2, 17 points, +1 (16-15), 16
6. Louisiana State 4-4-3, 15 points, +2 (11-9), 11
7. Kentucky 4-5-2, 14 points, +2 (19-17), 19
8. Vanderbilt 4-5-2, 14 points, -4 (11-15), 11
(Out of tournament)
9. Mississippi 3-5-3, 12 points, -8 (13-21), 13
10. Alabama 3-6-2, 11 points, -5 (10-15), 10
11. Arkansas 2-7-2, 8 points, -3 (17-20), 17
12. Mississippi State 1-10-0, 3 points, -34 (7-41), 7
Wednesday / Nov. 3
Rain postponed first round to Thursday
Thursday / Nov. 4
(2) South Carolina 1, (7) Kentucky 1 (2OT) (South Carolina wins on penalty kicks, 3-2)
(6) Louisiana State 1, (3) Tennessee 0 (OT)
(1) Florida 5, (8) Vanderbilt 3
(4) Georgia 2, (5) Auburn 1 (OT)
Friday / Nov. 5
(2) South Carolina 1, (6) Louisiana State 1 (South Carolina wins on penalty kicks, 4-3)
(1) Florida 3, (4) Georgia 1
Sunday / Nov. 7
(2) South Carolina (14-4-4) vs. (1) Florida (17-2-2), 3 p.m. (ESPNU) (Winner is SEC Tournament champion and NCAA Tournament automatic qualifier)