Game 1: #1 Florida def. #8 Vanderbilt, 4-0
BATON ROUGE — In the opening game of the 2001 Southeastern Conference Tournament, the top-seeded and 11th-ranked Florida Gators defeated eighth-seeded Vanderbilt, 4-0, on Thursday at the LSU Soccer Complex.
Florida improved to 15-3-1 on the season, while Vanderbilt ended the season at 7-10. The Gators return to action in the semifinal round at 5 p.m. on Friday.
The Gators outshot the Commodores, 25-7.
First, at the 14:47 mark, two-time All-American Abby W
ambach ran past the Vanderbilt defensive line, avoided the offsides call and took a pass from Danielle Murphy at the top of the box. After one touch, she finessed the ball through the legs of the on-coming keeper for a 1-0 lead.
Nearly 24 minutes later, the Gators tacked on a second goal when Dena Floyd took a corner kick and connected with Andi Sellers, who deflected the ball to Christine Johnson for a chip shot at the left side of the six-yard box. Florida led 2-0 at the 38:22 mark.
Florida dominated the half offensively and kept Vanderbilt without a possession in its penalty box. The Gators outshot the Commodores, 12-2, in the first half, while each keeper had a pair of saves.
With 35 minutes left in the game, Vanderbilt starting keeper Lauren Whitt received a red card and was ejected after a challenge and take down of Wambach just outside the penalty box. Whitt was replaced by Stacee Sproul.
Eleven minutes into the second half, Sellers took a breakaway more than half the length of the field for Florida’s third goal of the game at the 56:50 mark.
With only 2:35 to play, forward Jill Stevens took a misplayed ball at midfield for a one-on-one goal to put the Gators up, 4-0.
Florida goalkeepers Jordan Kellgren and Regan Wiesemann were credited with the combined shutout.
Florida advanced to semifinal round of the eight-team tournament and will gace the winner of the 2:30 p.m. contest between No. 4 seed Tennessee and No. 5 seed Kentucky.
2001 Southeasteron Conference Soccer Tournament
Baton Rouge, La.
Nov. 8, 2001
#1 Florida 4, #8 Vanderbilt 0
Vanderbilt 0 0 – 0
Florida 2 2 – 4
Scoring: Florida, Wamback, 14:47 (assist Murphy), Johnson, 38:22 (assists Sellers, Floyd), Sellers, 56:50 (assist, Johnson), Stevens, 87:25 (assist Visentin).
Yellow Card: Carroll, Vanderbilt, 69:18.
Red Card: Whitt, Vanderbilt, 54:10.
Game 2: #5 Kentucky 4, #4 Tennessee 2
BATON ROUGE — Led by Annie Gage’s two goals and one assist, the University of Kentucky converted three goals in the first half and held on for a 4-2 victory in the second game of the 2001 Southeastern Conference Tournament on Thursday afternoon at the LSU Soccer Complex.
Kentucky (12-6-1) jumped out to a 3-0 lead after 34:52 of play on a pair of goals by Annie Gage and a well struck deflection in the goal box by Christal Mattingly.
However, Tennessee (11-6) struck back with two unanswered direct-kick goals to bring the Lady Vols within one goal with less than eight minutes to play. Tennessee was unable to convert on a couple of good opportunities near the top of the penalty box down the stretch, while Kentucky was able to work its way down the field for another goal.
Gage’s first goal came at 5:34 when she took a high pass from Keri Boyce near the right corner of the goal box and put a one-time shot in the back of the net for a 1-0 lead.
Sixteen minutes later, Gage took advantage of a misplayed ball by Tennessee goalkeeper Cori Stevens at the top of the penalty box and rolled the ball into the back of the net at the 21:33 mark.
At 34:52, Mattingly scored her second goal of the season when she redirected Kim Jedlo’s cross with her left foot into the back of the net for a 3-0 lead.
Tennessee salvaged a goal in the closing seconds of the half when midfielder Jen Laughridge was tackled at the top of the penalty box, resulting in a Kentucky foul and a direct-kick goal by Sue Flamini at 44:55.
After battling back and forth for most of the second half, Tennessee again got an opportunity on a direct kick, and Flamini again converted from 35 yards on the right wing. Flamini hooked a left-footed blast into the left upper 90. The lead was cut to 3-2 at the 82:43 mark.
With 2:05 left to play, Kentucky sealed the victory with a 20-yard goal by Danielle Slupski, assisted by Gage.
Kentucky will meet top-seeded Florida in the first semifinal match on Friday at 5 p.m. at the LSU Soccer Complex.
#5 Kentucky 4, #4 Tennessee 2
Kentucky 3 1 – 4
Tennessee 1 1 – 2
Scoring: Kentucky, Gage, 5:36 (assist Boyce), Gage, 21:34 (unassisted), Mattingly, 34:54 (assist Jedlo), Slupski, 87:55 (assist Gage); Tennessee, Flamini, 44:55 (unassisted), Flamini, 82:34 (unassisted).
Yellow Cards: Wilson, Kentucky, 64:32; Nault, Tennessee, 70:31.
#7 Ole Miss 2, #2 Mississippi State 1
BATON ROUGE — The Ole Miss came back from one-goal deficit in the final 30 minutes of the contest to win game three of the 2001 Southeastern Conference Tournament and advance to the semifinal round, 2-1, over Mississippi State on Thursday at the LSU Soccer Complex.
Seventh-seeded Ole Miss improved to 10-9-1 overall, while second-seeded Mississippi State fell to 13-8. Ole Miss avenged an earlier loss in the regular season at the hands of Mississippi State.
Mississippi State forward Amy Van Zandt dribbled from midfield to the top of the penalty unabated and curled a ball into the left corner of the net past the outstretched arms of Ole Miss’ Melinda Smith for the first goal of the game at 23:16.
The Bulldogs outshot the Rebels, 13-10, in the first 45 minutes, including and 8-3 shot-on-goal advantage. Smith registered seven saves in the half.
Ole Miss’ Tiffany Weiss scored back-to-back goals halfway through the second half to put the Rebels in control of the match. At 66:09, Weiss rebounded a shot by Kristin Chapman and blasted a shot past Bulldog goalkeeper Krystal Werges to tie the match at 1-1.
Two minutes later, Weiss netted the Bulldogs’ second goal of the game when she intercepted a clearing pass by Werges and hit a shot from 35-yards past the diving keeper.
The Rebels advance to face the winner of Auburn and Georgia on Friday at 7:30 p.m. in the semifinal round at the LSU Soccer Complex.
— agate to follow —
#7 Ole Miss 2, #2 Mississippi State 1
Ole Miss 0 2 – 2
Mississippi State 1 0 – 1
Scoring: Mississippi State, Van Zandt, 23:16 (assist Patterson); Ole Miss, Weiss, 66:09 (assist Chapman), Weiss, 68:16 (unassisted).
Yellow Card: Ole Miss, Weiss, 29:45.
Game 4: #6 Auburn 3, #3 Georgia 2
BATON ROUGE — The sixth-seeded Auburn Tigers upset the third-seeded Georgia Bulldogs, 3-2, in the final game of the first day at the 2001 Southeastern Conference Tournament at the LSU Soccer Complex on Thursday.
Auburn improved to 10-6-1, while Georgia fell to 12-5-1.
The sixth-seeded Auburn Tigers took a 1-0 lead only 3:23 into the match when Christina Culver hit a shot from eight yards out on the left wing. The play was set up by Erin Hinson and Sara Power, who earned assists.
Less than five minutes later, the Bulldogs tied the match at 1-1 on a goal by Amy Berbary, who converted a corner kick that deflected off two Georgia players. Shannon Murray and Nicole Greathead were credited with assists on the play.
Auburn had the best chance to take a lead into halftime, but Power’s shot from only 10 yards out avoided Georgia goalkeeper Ashley Lindley but couldn’t avoid the post and bounced away harmlessly with less than two minutes to play.
In a physical first half that ended with 17 combined fouls, each team took seven shots including five on-goal apiece.
Georgia scored first in the second half when Ashley King struck a one-timer past Auburn keeper Megan Rivera to take a 2-1 lead. Andrea Velasco and Charisse Co set up the play with passes around the penalty box to King’s right foot.
Auburn countered the goal with one of its own at the 58:04 mark, as Power dribbled through the Bulldog’s defensive line to avoid an offsides call then crossed to Sandy Carnes for an easy chip-shot goal past Lindley.
The Tigers took the lead, 3-2, on a Kellie Evans goal at the 70:43 mark. Evans took a pass from Gretchen Winter at the corner of the penalty box and blasted a shot past Lindley, off the left post and into the net.
Berbary received a red card after arguing a hard tackle with less than three minutes remaining, putting the Bulldogs a man down.
Auburn will meet seventh-seeded Ole Miss in the second semifinal game at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Top-seeded Florida and No. 5 seed Kentucky will meet in the first semifinal game at 5 p.m.
— agate to follow —
#6 Auburn 3, #3 Georgia 2
Auburn 1 2 – 3
Georgia 1 1 – 2
Scoring: Auburn, Culver, 3:23 (assists Hinson, Power), Carnes, 58:04 (assist Power), Evans, 70:43 (assist Winter); Georgia, Berbary, 8:13 (assist Murray, Greathead), King, 48:19 (assists Velasco, Co).
Yellow Cards: Auburn, Culver, 64:39; Georgia, Cayard, 13:32.
Red Card: Georgia, Berbary, 87:15.