TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Abbie Boswell scored in the 102nd minute Sunday to lift the Alabama women’s soccer team to a 3-2 double-overtime victory against Mississippi State in a Southeastern Conference match at the Alabama Soccer Complex.
Alabama (9-6-1, 1-5-1 SEC) kept its SEC tournament hopes alive after MSU (7-4-3, 1-4-2) rallied from a two-goal deficit in the second half to send the match to overtime.
“We showed a lot of guts tonight, especially after losing four games in a row,” Alabama coach Wes Hart said. “It would have been very easy to hang our heads after giving up a two-goal lead, but credit to the girls, they fought their way back. Boswell missed a couple of chances at the end of regulation, but the first thing she said when she came off the field after the first overtime was, ‘Give me one more chance I’m going to get the goal.’ ”
Boswell scored the game-winner after she took a header from Kayla Mouton and tucked the ball home.
The win was Alabama’s first against MSU in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, since 2010. It also was the first overtime victory against MSU in program history.
On Senior Day, senior Alexis Mouton opened up the match with her first goal in the 28th minute. Freshman Casey Wertz scored her third goal to make it 2-0.
Goals by MaKayla Waldner and Carly Mauldin less than three minutes apart helped MSU surge back into the match. Waldner’s goal came off a deflected pass. She collected the loose ball and fired a shot into the lower left corner. Mauldin’s goal came after a foul by goalkeeper Kat Stratton gave MSU a free kick. Mauldin finished the shot into the upper left corner to tie the match.
“I give our players credit for (coming back),” MSU coach Tom Anagnost said of the Bulldogs’ two quick scores. “We kept going at them and trying to get a goal and we did. We kept at it and got another one. Momentum-wise, I thought we could get a third one. I give our kids credit for staying with it. They kept at it.”
MSU survived in regulation thanks to goalkeeper Catalina Perez, who made five saves. Perez also displayed her athleticism in the 94th minute by preventing Mouton from scoring the game-winner with a sliding save off her knee to eventually force a second overtime.
“We just have to do better in the box, offensively and defensively,” Anagnost said. “In the end, we have to a better job defensively. Cat made a couple of very good saves to keep us tied. We’re really close, but still not there and we have to be there at Georgia.”
MSU had a 22-17 edge in shots. Both teams had eight shots on goal. Stratton made six saves.
MSU will play at 6 p.m. Thursday at Georgia, while Alabama will take on Arkansas at 7 p.m. Thursday in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
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