KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Thanks to a brace from sophomore Olivia Woodson and an 80th-minute game-winner from senior Sydnie Thibodaux, No. 14 Auburn soccer picked up its first win in Knoxville since 2015 as the Tigers knocked off the Lady Vols 3-2 in a back-and-forth clash Sunday afternoon at Regal Soccer Stadium.
“What a gutsy performance by the entire team,” head coach Karen Hoppa said. “We faced a lot of adversity in the match, clearly, with injuries and losing the lead twice. For us to come back twice and finish that game out was incredible. It was a terrific, gutsy performance by this team.”
Woodson broke through with her first of the match in the 21st minute, but the Lady Vols responded with one of their own in minute 35. Both squads went into the locker room at halftime squared away at one-all. Fresh out of the break, Woodson struck for another, burying her 10th goal of the season in the 47th minute. Five minutes after that, Tennessee leveled once more with an open header on a corner kick. Thibodaux put the match away for good with 10 minutes left on the clock to bag Auburn’s 12th win of the season.
“That was extremely exciting,” Thibodaux said. “I knew that was going to give us a really good chance to finally win the game. It was so tight between both teams, but we knew if we kept at it, something would fall our way. It felt great to be the one to get it done for my teammates.”
Auburn improves to 12-1-2 on the season and 4-1-2 in SEC play. Tennessee falls to 7-3-3, 2-2-2. The loss for the Lady Vols was their first on home turf this season.
Thatcher was credited with an assist for creating Auburn’s first goal of the afternoon. It was her sixth of the season. The senior from Greer, South Carolina beat a Tennessee defender on the left edge of the box and cut in to play a perfect ball across the face of goal past four defenders and to Woodson, who tapped it in for the early lead.
Thatcher also found the feet of Woodson in the 46th minute to initiate the second goal. Woodson received the ball on Auburn’s side of the midfield line and dribbled past two defenders and all the way upfield before perfectly threading a ball past Ally Zazzara into the low far post.
“This is an exciting team win,” Woodson said. “We had a great feeling about today, and the vibes were good, so we were ready to get out there and just play our game. Tennessee is a great opponent, so it fuels us with even more confidence to know we can get a win against a team like that on the road.”
Woodson earned the fourth brace of her career, and her first in an SEC match. She now leads the league with 10 goals scored on the season.
With 10 minutes left in the match and both sides even at two-apiece, a quick combination from Haddock and Thibodaux resulted in what would be the nail in Tennessee’s coffin. Haddock cut across the top of the box and used a sliding pass to avoid oncoming pressure and feed Thibodaux just outside the arc. Thibodaux took a pair of quick touches before unleashing a rocket of a shot that curled inside the left upper 90 for the game-winning golazo.
It was Thibodaux’s fourth goal of the season and the second game-winner of her career. On the play, Haddock picked up the 42nd assist of her career, officially matching Katy Frierson for the program record.
Statistically, Auburn outplayed its opponent on shots 11-5 and on corner kicks 3-2. The Orange & Blue back line surrendered just two shots on frame for the second match in a row. With its three goals on Sunday, Auburn has now scored 45 on the season, the most from a Tigers squad since 2016.
Up next, Auburn heads to Lexington, Kentucky for a face off with the Wildcats on Friday, Oct. 18 at 6:30 p.m. CT.