Nov. 15, 2014
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FORT MYERS, Fla. - An early goal from junior Haley Gerken, followed by a defensive performance that put up its 10th shutout of the season pushed the Auburn soccer team past Florida Gulf Coast Saturday night, winning 1-0 to advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Gerken scored her second goal of the season in the 10th minute of the match after a nicely dropped in ball by redshirt senior Tori Ball. Gerken saw the opening on the far post and one-timed it in to give Auburn the only goal it needed for the victory.
"Florida Gulf coast did a great job hosting this match," Auburn head coach Karen Hoppa said. "It was a great crowd and a great environment and I was proud of our team for gutting this one out. This is a really difficult place to play against a very talented and tough opponent. We got the good early goal and then our defense just stood tall. I think our defense really won the game for us tonight."
With the win, Auburn advances to second round of the NCAA Tournament for the sixth time in its history and will face three-seeded Texas Tech next Friday. The location of the match is still to be determined and depends on the result of the Florida-Mercer match on Sunday.
Auburn took the life out of the stadium-record crowd at the FGCU Soccer Complex with Gerken's goal in the 10th minute and the defense kept up the pace in the first half, holding the Eagles to only one shot at halftime. The Tigers tallied four shots in the first half, two from Gerken, but all coming in the first 20 minutes.
Florida Gulf Coast came out firing in the second half, looking to equalize the match, notching five shots in the final 45 minutes. However, redshirt senior Alyse Scott made two big saves in the net, including one in the 84th minute off an FGCU corner that found a hole in the defense.
After the header by Kaitlin Parker was blocked, Shannen Wacker one-timed the rebound at the net. Scott held her ground and secured the ball as it was kicked right at her.
"During corners we bunker down," Scott said after the game. "This is what we do. We don't let them score. They had someone open inside the six and I'm so glad she hit it to me, because it was a rocket."
"It's all about positioning," Hoppa added. "We work with our goalkeepers all the time. Alyse was in the right spot, she stayed on her feet and didn't guess. She watched it all the way in and held it without giving up a rebound. I give Alyse a lot of credit. It was a big time save in a big time moment for a sophomore. To make that play for us was massive."
The 10 shutouts by Auburn this year ties for the second-most by a Tiger team in a single-season. Auburn last had 10 shutouts in a season in 2008 when Auburn won the SEC West. As for Scott, it's her 10th shutout of the season also, second-most in a single-season by an Auburn player.
The Tigers will go on the road again for its second-round matchup with the Red Raiders. The match will be next Friday and will be at either Gainesville, Fla., or Lubbock, Texas. Florida is the No. 2 seed in Auburn's quadrant and Texas Tech is the three-seed, therefore holding home-field advantage for the higher seeded team in the second and third rounds.
For more information on Auburn soccer, visit AuburnTigers.com, follow the team on Twitter, @AuburnSoccer or follow them on Facebook at Facebook.com/AuburnSoccer.