Oct. 19, 2008
AUBURN, Ala. -
Katy Frierson added to her already spectacular freshman campaign on Sunday as the Birmingham native scored two goals to lead Auburn to a 2-0 win over South Carolina on Sunday afternoon. Frierson now leads the team with eight goals this season as Auburn improved to 8-7-2, 4-3-1 SEC with the win.
Playing a wide open first half with minimal stoppages in play, Auburn was able to light the scoreboard in the 26th minute when Frierson one-touched a ball in off the foot of Gabi Rivera while sliding into South Carolina goalkeeper Mollie Patton.
"The first half we didn't play too well. I am not sure if Gabi put in a cross or a shot but either way it went to the right spot and I made a good read on it and got a foot on it," Frierson said.
"It was a great ball by Gabi, playing the ball back in to the far post, and it was obviously a great effort by Katy to slide and get the goal, but then we sat back and we didn't control the half like we would have liked too," Auburn Head Coach Karen Hoppa said.
The Freshman of the Year candidate put the game away at the 80:28 mark when she bombed a free kick from just under 30 yards out over the four-man South Carolina wall for her eighth goal of the season and give Auburn the 2-0 edge. Frierson had set up her own free kick by drawing the foul on the South Carolina midfielder.
"The kick was in the middle of the field and they only had a few people in the wall. I was able to drive it at a good angle," Frierson said.
Allison Whitworth preserved the shutout, the 20th of her career, by making six saves in the match. She now has 317 career saves and needs just 12 more to become the all-time saves leader in Auburn history.
"Our defense stepped it up all week. They were fantastic in the Florida game, not giving up a goal in the run of play. Lizzie Hamersly has really come on and she and Sammy Towne have done a fantastic job as our center-backs. That has allowed us to put Jenn (Johnson) out wide which is a more natural position for her, and that gives us another attacker as well."
The shutout was the seventh of the season for Auburn and its third in conference play.
"The whole team working together really keyed the shutout, it wasn't just the back line but everyone defending well," Johnson said.
With the results of Sunday all in, Auburn is now tied for fifth with South Carolina (10-4-3, 4-3-1 SEC) in the overall SEC standings with just three regular season contests left. With the win Auburn also holds the tiebreaker over USC if they were to remain tied in the final standings.
Auburn will play the two teams directly in front of it in the standings next week as it winds down the season, traveling to Georgia for an 8pm ET match on Thursday, which will be broadcast live on the Fox Soccer Channel, and then returning home for a 2pm match on Sunday against Tennessee.