Tag: auburn soccer

AUBURN, Ala. – Auburn fell to Samford 2-0 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament Friday night at the Auburn Soccer Complex.

The two teams took a scoreless tie into halftime, but Samford (16-3-2) scored a pair of goals in the middle of the second half to hand Auburn (12-7-1) just its third home loss of the season.

“We’re certainly disappointed with the loss. It’s not the way we wanted to send out our seniors,” head coach Karen Hoppa said. “We’re obviously very young, and I think there’s a lot our team can learn from this. We’re looking forward to next year already.”

Winners of the Southern Conference regular season and tournament championships, Samford advances to the second round in Durham, North Carolina to take on the winner of tomorrow’s contest between Brown and St. John’s.

“Like coach said, we’re a very young team so we’ve continued to grow,” said Hannah Waesch. “Just building on some of our strengths and continuing to work on our weaknesses. Growth has been a big theme of this season.”

Auburn was the aggressor in the first half, outshooting the Bulldogs 7-1 and tallying six corner kicks to Samford’s zero in the opening stanza. The Tigers had a chance to take the lead into half as Olivia Candelino found space inside the box but her shot skipped wide of frame.

Coming out of halftime, the Bulldogs were the first to get on the scoreboard on Mary Raymond’s goal in the 61st minute. Sixteen minutes later, Taylor Yount doubled Samford’s lead before the visitors bled out the final 14 minutes of the contest.

Auburn nearly cut the deficit to one on a pair of looks in the final stages, but Samford goalkeeper Morgan McAslan made the saves to preserve the two-goal advantage.

Auburn finished with 15 shots but could never find the back of the net. Anna Haddock led the way with seven shots, two of which were on frame. Samford finished with six shots but was able to capitalize on one-third of its chances.

Sixteen Tigers saw action in the contest, including 12 who appeared in a NCAA Tournament game for the first time.

This is a release from Auburn Athletics.

The following is a release from Auburn Athletics. 

ORANGE BEACH, Ala. – Auburn soccer advanced to its first SEC Tournament semifinal since 2016 with a 2-1 win against South Carolina Tuesday night at the Orange Beach Sportsplex.

The win marks Auburn’s first against the Gamecocks since 2012 and sets up a semifinal showdown with top-seeded Arkansas (15-3-0) Thursday at 5 p.m. CT.

“What a great performance by our team,” head coach Karen Hoppa said. “It was a total team effort. I thought our speed of play was outstanding. We scored two great goals, created a lot of opportunities. In the end, after they got the penalty kick, we stood strong defensively.”

The win is the Tigers (12-5-1) second result against South Carolina (11-6-1) in as many SEC Tournament matchups, previously advancing on penalty kicks against the Gamecocks in 2015.

M.E. Craven and Sydney Richards accounted for the scoring in the contest, while four Tigers in Anna Haddock, Rocio Sanders, Olivia Candelino and Marissa Arias pitched in with assists.

“It was just a great feeling for all of us,” Craven said. “Our possession was finally starting to come together. I think it was the best possession we’ve played, so it was just exciting.”

On the other end, sophomore goalkeeper Maddie Prohaska and the Auburn back line held South Carolina scoreless in the run of play, only conceding a penalty kick to allow the Gamecocks to draw within one.

“It was great, but this is just the beginning,” Prohaska said of the win. “My back line was excellent. They had my back and I had theirs. That’s really what makes a great back line and a great goalkeeper, when we understand each other and can pick each other up.”

 With the clock winding down toward halftime, Auburn took a 1-0 lead on Craven’s third goal of the year. The senior defender got a right foot on a ball at the six-yard line and snuck it past the South Carolina goalkeeper to start the scoring. Haddock served the free kick to the feet of Sanders, and Craven finished it off.

Continuing its momentum out of halftime, the Tigers pressed forward to start the second stanza and fired off three shots in the first 12 minutes after tallying just two in the first half. The team’s fourth shot found the back of the net as Richards buried one after the goalkeeper came off her line. Candelino and Arias played a nice give and go, and Arias ultimately laid it off to Richards, who finished with the right from the top of the box.

“It was huge,” Richards said of taking a 2-0 lead. “We really needed it. We wouldn’t have won that game without it. It’s good that we had the second one to cushion (the lead).”

After taking a 2-0 lead, Auburn was called for a foul inside the box at the 71-minute mark, and South Carolina cut the deficit in half with the penalty-kick goal. However, Prohaska and the Tigers defensive unit buckled down, allowing just one shot in the final 19 minutes of action.

Prohaska recorded her first save on a diving attempt less than four minutes into the contest and ultimately tallied five saves while making a number of other plays that didn’t show up on the scoresheet.

“She was outstanding, one of her best performances so far in her young career,” Hoppa added of Prohaska.

Auburn was efficient in its attack as the Tigers put three of eight shots on goal and two past the South Carolina goalkeeper.

Six Tigers logged all 90 minutes and 16 players ultimately saw action in the contest.

The following is a release of Auburn Athletics.

AUBURN, Ala. – No. 19 Auburn suffered a 2-0 loss to No. 4 Arkansas Thursday night at the Auburn Soccer Complex.

The loss snapped a three-game winning and shutout streak for the Tigers (11-4-0, 5-3-0 SEC) and marked just the team’s second home loss of the season, both coming against top-four opponents.

“Arkansas is a great team, and they are really difficult to play,’ head coach Karen Hoppa said. “The biggest difference was they outplayed us in the second half. I thought the first half was good. We created better opportunities. Obviously, they got the one goal on the scrum in the box, and we didn’t get any. The second half we just got outplayed.”

Three Auburn seniors in Alyssa Malonson, Rocio Sanders and Olivia Dedels were honored for their contributions to the program during a Senior Night ceremony prior to the game.

“It’s an incredible group,” Hoppa said of her seniors. “It’s kind of an odd senior class because we have seven seniors on the roster, but only three of them are leaving us after this season. They’re a really special group.”

Malonson made her 92nd straight start in an Auburn uniform in the contest and set a new program record in games started and consecutive games started while tying the games played record.

“Alyssa Malonson, what can you say about her?” Hoppa asked. “She has now started more games than any other player in Auburn soccer history. She’s a very special player, and we are grateful we still have her.”

Auburn created its chances in the early going with its best looks coming on a deflected shot from Anna Haddock after receiving a pretty through ball from Marissa Arias and a shot on goal from just outside the six-yard box from Olivia Candelino.

However, it was Arkansas (13-2-0, 8-0-0 SEC) that was first to get on the scoreboard as a free-kick turned into a scrum inside the six-yard box, which ultimately resulted in a goal in the 35th minute.

Trailing at halftime at home for the first time since Sept. 12 vs. No. 1 Florida State, Auburn came out fighting for the equalizer and had a pair of chances in the middle portion of the second half. Sydney Richards received a heel flick from Arias and got a look at the goal in the 54th minute, and Carly Thatcher played a through ball to Arias making a run down the middle of the field, but it was a touch too much.

Sophomore goalkeeper Maddie Prohaska made a sliding save on a one-on-one situation in the 68th minute to keep the deficit at one, but Arkansas was eventually able to double its advantage less than two minutes later.

Prohaska made another diving save on a header off a corner, one of her four saves in the match, but it was too little too late for the Tigers.

“We’re just trying to refocus on what we can control, and we control the next two games,” Hoppa added. “All of our focus is on Sunday and trying to find a way to get a result.”

Auburn hits the road for its final two regular-season games, starting with another top-20 matchup at No. 13 Ole Miss (11-3-2, 6-2-0 SEC) Sunday at 2 p.m. in Oxford, Mississippi.

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AUBURN, Ala. – No. 22 Auburn defeated LSU, 1-0, in overtime as Marissa Arias’ golden goal in the 93rd minute was the difference Sunday afternoon at the Auburn Soccer Complex.

Arias put a rebounded attempt from Alyssa Malonson into the back of the net to lead Auburn (10-3-0, 4-2-0 SEC) to its 13th straight result against LSU (8-5-0, 1-5-0 SEC). The Tigers are now 3-0-0 against SEC West foes this season.

“It was a great week,” head coach Karen Hoppa said. “Two West wins, two 1-0 wins, and two shutouts. To grind this out in the heat on a Sunday and get the win is a credit to our team character and our leadership.“

Arias’ goal was her sixth of the season and team-high fourth in SEC play. All six of her goals have come in the last eight contests and two have proven to be game-winners.

“It was amazing,” Arias said of her golden goal. “I missed one earlier in the game, so I was beating myself up for not finishing that one. It was nice to put one away.”

The game marked Auburn’s sixth shutout of the season, including its second of the week and fourth of SEC play. The Tigers haven’t allowed a goal against LSU in six meetings and nearly 600 minutes.

Malonson not only assisted the game-winning goal but was also once again instrumental in the team’s defensive effort, leading the way for all 93 minutes.

“I was putting everything on the line,” Malonson said. “I was really tired, so I wanted to get it done as soon as possible. We are always really good on set pieces, so I knew we would get a result from that.”

Maddie Prohaska was only credited with one save on the stat sheet, but the sophomore goalkeeper made many more plays in the box, not allowing any second attempts to keep LSU in check throughout.

“It was really a point of emphasis,” Prohaska said. “I think the biggest thing is we played as a team defensively. We continued to build off of each other.”

Auburn controlled the first half of play, but the two teams took a 0-0 tie into halftime despite the Tigers outshooting their counterpart 9-1. The team’s best look of the first 45 minutes came on a through ball from Anna Haddock to Kylie Bechard in the final stages of the half.

The pace on both ends of the field quickened after intermission, and Prohaska helped keep the score tied as she deflected a near post flick on LSU’s only shot on goal of the contest.

Prohaska, Malonson and the rest of Auburn’s back line held strong as the visiting Tigers applied pressure in the middle portion of the second half, and it was ultimately the home-standing Tigers who regained momentum the last 10 minutes of regulation.

Auburn nearly broke the ice with 10 minutes to play when Olivia Candelino drew a foul 24 yards from goal and Haddock hit a well-struck, left-footed free kick. However, LSU’s goalkeeper was there to haul in the attempt in front of goal.

As the clock ticked towards zero, the Tigers attempted four shots in a span of less than two minutes, but the game ultimately remained scoreless at the end of regulation.

Like they had for much of the contest, Auburn continued to press up the field at the start of overtime, and it only took the Tigers 2:27 to finally find the back of the net.

After Auburn winning a corner kick, M.E. Craven got her head on a service from Mallory Mooney and Malonson ran it down near post. The fifth-year defender but her header on frame and the LSU goalkeeper deflected it with her body, but Arias was right there to clean it up and end the game.

Auburn tallied 20 shots in the contest and put seven on goal. Eleven of 18 players who saw action Sunday registered a shot, led by four from Haddock and three from Maddie Simpson.

The Tigers stay at home to host Florida (3-8-3, 2-3-1 SEC) next Sunday, Oct. 17 at 12 p.m. CT on ESPNU.

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The following is a press release from Auburn Athletics. 

AUBURN, Ala. – Sydney Richards scored the game-winning goal in the 85th minute as No. 22 Auburn defeated Mississippi State, 1-0, Thursday night in Starkville, Mississippi.

The win was Auburn’s first SEC road win of the year, and the shutout marked the team’s fifth of the season, including the third in five league contests.

“What a great defensive performance by our team,” head coach Karen Hoppa said. “It was just a total team effort. I thought we did a great job winning second balls, a great job pressing in our attacking half. That created a lot of opportunities for us, and we finally got one to seal the game on the road.”

After picking up the pace and maintaining the majority of the possession in the second half, Auburn (9-3-0, 3-2-0 SEC) broke a scoreless tie when Richards flicked a cross from Olivia Candelino beyond an unassuming Mississippi State (3-5-3, 1-3-1 SEC) goalkeeper and into the back of the net.

“I just knew I had to go for it, so I jumped as high as I could, got a little something on it, goalie didn’t see it coming, and that was that,” Richards said of her game-winner. “This was especially big for us because we just needed it for confidence on the road. It was a good win.”

The goal marked the fourth of the season for Richards, including her second game-winner, and the Tigers improved to 2-0-0 against SEC West foes with the victory.

On the other end of the field, sophomore goalkeeper Maddie Prohaska made four crucial saves and led the defensive effort as the Tigers turned in the first road shutout of the season.

“We play defense as a team, and the backline is really coming together,” Prohaska said of the Tigers’ defensive effort.

“I think we’re on a high, but we know we have to come back down because we have to take care of business on Sunday,” Prohaska added. “This is just a part of our quest for the West. Two wins down, but a lot more to go.” 

Auburn appeared to have drawn first blood 10 minutes into the contest when Candelino headed a cross from Richards into the back of the net, but the goal was negated on an offside call. 

The Tigers searched for chances from that point on in the first half, Prohaska made three saves in the opening stanza, including a leaping deflection on Mississippi State’s first shot from range in the 17th minute, to keep it scoreless at the break.

With the score still tied in the middle stages of the second half, the Tigers threatened with a pair of shots and a corner in a span of 40 seconds but ultimately came up empty after a deflected shot from Grace Sklopan and header from Kylie Bechard.

The Tigers continued to pick up the pace into the late stages of the game and it finally paid off when Anna Haddock played a ball up the right side to Candelino, who lifted one with the left foot in front of net for Richards to rise up, get her head on it and put it in goal.

 Auburn ultimately outshot Mississippi State, 9-7, in the contest, including 6-3 in the second half. Richards led the way with three attempts, while Bechard and Candelino fired off two apiece.

The Tigers return to the Plains for the first time in two weeks and plays host to LSU (8-4-0, 1-3-0 SEC) Sunday at 2 p.m. CT at the Auburn Soccer Complex.

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