ORANGE BEACH - Marry Coffed and Julie King scored goals to lift Auburn's soccer tam to a 2-1 victory over Ole Miss on Wesdnesday in the Southeastern Conference Tournament at the Orange Beach Sportsplex.
“We did a great job of finding a way to win," Auburn coach Karen Hoppa said. "Ole Miss is a great team and they played a great game. Our girls just did a fantastic job of getting better from last weekend.
“We scored goals when we needed to and we did a great job of ending the game the last 10-15 minutes, not giving them a good look and getting out of here with a 2-1 win.”
The Tigers advanced to play No. 3 LSU, a 4-2 winner over Vanderbilt.
“I try to find the open pass and do whatever it takes to keep the ball for the team," Frierson said. "That’s the role of the midfield, to keep the ball and keep possession."
Auburn wasted little time getting on the board, scoring 2:38 into the match on the game’s first shot. Frierson picked up her team-leading ninth assist, finding Coffed for her fourth goal of the season and the 1-0 lead. Frierson held possession just outside the 18 and crossed it to Coffed at the opposite side of the 18. Coffed then sent it back in across the grain, sliding it just inside far post for Auburn’s quickest score of the season.
“One of our keys to the game was to come out early and come out strong with a lot of physicality," Coffed said. "It was really important to get on the board first. We like to get the ball up the field as fast as we can. Katy gave me a perfect cross, and I was able to place it far post, so lots of the credit goes to Katy.”
King headed in a Frierson corner in the 57th minute to put Auburn up 2-0. The goal was King’s third of the season.
Auburn faces No. 3 seed LSU, a 4-2 winner over Vanderbilt, in the semifinals. Auburn is 0-1-1 all-time against LSU at the SEC Tournament. The two teams met in the first round of the 2007 tournament, playing to a 2-2 tie, though LSU advanced on penalty kicks. LSU defeated Auburn 2-0 in the regular-season meeting between the two on Oct. 4 in Auburn.
