Aug. 22, 2014
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CLEMSON, S.C. - On a humid night in Clemson, S.C., the Auburn University soccer team found themselves in a 2-0 hole early in the second half Friday night. The team was able to cut the score in half with just under 30 minutes to play off a goal by junior Logan Beal, but it wouldn't be enough as the Tigers fell, 2-1, in its 2014 season opener.
Clemson took the 1-0 lead in the first half off the foot of Tori Andreski and took that score into halftime. It doubled that lead in the 63rd minute as Salma Anastasio scored off a deflection from 12 yards out, but Auburn was able to buckle down and get the score from Beal just six minutes later.
Auburn falls to 0-1-0 for the season, its first season-opening loss since 2011, a 4-1 defeat to No. 18 Wake Forest. Even though it was a tough loss for Auburn, head coach Karen Hoppa believes her team showed a lot of heart and looked solid in the second half.
"I was happy with our team's efforts," Hoppa said. "That's the number one thing. We have to leave it all out on the field like we did tonight. Our second half was better than our first and we gave ourselves chances to win. I thought a little bit of our youth showed through and at the end we didn't manage the game well. Overall, I'm pleased. I thought it was a quality performance against a very good Clemson team. The more games we play, the better we're going to get."
Clemson started the scoring the 18th minute when Andreski scored the first goal of the campaign. Clemson was looking for an offensive opportunity near midfield and got a strike from Andreski about 25 yards from the net on the right flank. The shot curved just out of redshirt sophomore Alyse Scott's reach and found the top left corner to give Clemson the single goal lead.
That score carried through halftime before Clemson was able to double its advantage in the 63rd minute. Anastasio scored her first of the season off the Allie Kington assist from 12 yards out. After a couple of deflections in the front of the net, Anastasio found a hole and gave her team the 2-0 lead.
Auburn finally found its rhythm soon after the second Clemson goal and found its opening in the 69th minute. Getting one of its five corner kicks in the second half, Gerken spotted one right in front of the net and found the head of freshman Kristen Dodson. The laser shot was on point, but was deflected off the knee of Beal, allowing it to sneak past the Clemson keeper. The goal was Beal's third of her career and ties her career-high.
"It was a great corner," Hoppa said. "We work on those a lot and that's an opportunity we talk about a lot. When you can control the ball and take advantage of it. The girls were fantastic Logan (Beal) is small, but she's great in front of the net. I give a lot of credit to her on that. She comes out to keeper practice every day and works on that because she's putting in the extra time. It was a really good goal and got us back in the game."
Auburn had a few more opportunities in the waning minutes of the game, but couldn't get a clear look through Clemson's defense to find the equalizer.
Auburn finished the match with five shots, three on goal. All three shots that were on target were in the second half. The Orange and Blue did win the corners by a 6-2 score, five coming in the second half alone.
The Tigers will be back on the field on Sunday when they face Furman in another non-conference road match. Kick is slated for 1 p.m. in Greenville, S.C. and can be heard on WEGL 91.1 FM in Auburn or on AuburnTigers.com.
For more information on Auburn soccer, visit AuburnTigers.com, follow the team on Twitter, @AuburnSoccer or follow them on Facebook at Facebook.com/AuburnSoccer.