Auburn, Ala. (EETV)- No. 13 Auburn fell to no.17 South Carolina, 3-2, in Columbia, S.C., on Friday night. With the loss, Auburn falls to 8-3 on the season and 2-2 in SEC play.
“Unfortunately, we made some mistakes early in each half and a very experienced South Carolina team capitalized on those mistakes,” head coach Karen Hoppa said. “Our team did a great job of battling back into the game and had some chances to tie it up.”
Auburn fell behind early once again, when South Carolina found the back of the net in the fourth minute off a corner kick. South Carolina doubled its lead 20 minutes into the first half on a counterattack.
Auburn controlled possession for the rest of the half but couldn not cut into the deficit.
Auburn came into the second half looking to get back into it, but South Carolina countered and expanded their lead to three just outside of the restart.
“We need to learn from these mistakes quickly before we go on the road again next week,” Hoppa added.
Senior Alyssa Malonson cut into the three-goal lead 10 minutes later. The goal is her second of the season and the fourth of her career. Sophomore Anna Haddock earned the assist.
In the 88th minute, Auburn cut the deficit to just one through Marissa Arias. Malonson kept finding space on the flank and found Arias with a cross.
Ultimately, it was too little too late, as the Tigers could not crawl back into the game.
Auburn will look to get back in form when they go on the road to face Mississippi State in Starkville, Miss., on Thursday, Oct. 7 at 6:30 p.m. CST.
