Carolina advances to semi-finals of SEC Tournament
A shootout in Orange Beach, Ala., appears to be a winning combination for the Gamecocks.
Faced with a rematch against Kentucky (10-7-3, 4-5-3) in the opening round of the SEC Tournament, No. 20 South Carolina (14-4-3, 8-2-2) managed to avoid the upset by knocking off the Wildcats in penalty kicks after playing 110 minutes in a 1-1 draw. The win advances the Gamecocks to the semi-final round to take on LSU.
The match was a long-awaited one for both teams. Slated to be played Wednesday, the game was delayed due to inclement weather. Although heavy winds continued to be an issue Thursday, conditions were good enough for the match to get the green light.
Carolina brought the offensive pressure early on in the match, recording 10 shots in the first half with the wind at its back, and in the 10th minute, managed to jump out to an early lead. Receiving a pass in the box from junior forward Kayla Grimsley, freshman midfielder Danielle Au crossed the ball to senior forward Brooke Jacobs, who fired it in the top corner to give the Gamecocks a 1-0 lead.
“It was a great feeling to come back [and score]. I feel like I’m back in the game,” Jacobs said in reference to recovering from a hamstring injury. “It was a great feeling for our team to put us up one.”
The assist on the play was Grimsley’s tenth of the year, making her the first player in program history to earn 10 goals, 10 assists and 30 points in a single season.
“It’s awesome,” Grimsley said. “Like I said before, I was only one assist away from someone else doing their job. Today, Danielle got herself open on a very calm Kentucky defense and Brooke was in the perfect position. Danielle played a perfect ball and we scored. It’s just incredible the build up that we had. We were calm and composed. The wind out here was crazy. It’s just good to get that.”
The score remained 1-0 as the match moved into the 85th minute and the Gamecocks appeared to be on their way to their second victory over the Wildcats in 2010. After earning a corner kick, however, UK forward Alyssa Telang managed to bend the kick into the goal, tying the score at 1-1 and sending the game into extra time.
Recovering quickly from Kentucky’s equalizer, Carolina retained the advantage in overtime, outshooting UK 6-1. Neither team managed to score, however, so the match advanced to penalty kicks.
“It was too bad we gave up one with five minutes left, but we did well under that circumstance to get chances and keep the ball under that pressure of not being able to play forward a lot,” coach Shelley Smith said. “The momentum changes when you go down a goal. To come back and fight through another 10 minutes of having the wind against you, a lot of people played a role today.”
Playing in a shootout in Orange Beach for the second straight game, Carolina quickly jumped ahead of UK. The Wildcats missed each of their first two attempts, while Jacobs and freshman midfielder Kelsey Barr managed to knock their shots in to give the Gamecocks a 2-0 advantage.
Kentucky managed to convert its next two, however, and after senior defender Brittiny Rhoades and junior midfielder Kortney Rhoades hit the crossbar and post, respectively, on Carolina’s next two attempts, both teams advanced to their final shooter with the score tied 2-2.
After UK failed to score on its final attempt, Grimsley fired her shot past keeper Sydney Hiance to send the Gamecocks into the semi-final round for the third time in four seasons.
“I was more confident this game, I think. I was amped. I was ready to play,” Grimsley said. “Our girls did their jobs and Mollie did her job. I said that I was going to put this in. I had to. There was a lot riding on this game. It was either this or go home. Last time we made it far and made it to the finals, so I wasn’t as amped as the last time to take it. I was just calmer this time, and I knew I had to put it in in order for us to stay here and advance. That was the only thing in my mind, to put it in and not let the team down.”
