Razorbacks clinch share of women’s SEC soccer title
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The No. 9 Arkansas Razorbacks women’s soccer team defeated Mississippi 5-1 to clinch a share of the Southeastern Conference regular-season title, their fourth in the last five seasons.
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The No. 9 Arkansas Razorbacks women’s soccer team defeated Mississippi 5-1 to clinch a share of the Southeastern Conference regular-season title, their fourth in the last five seasons.
The Razorbacks (11-3-2 overall, 7-1-1 in SEC play) celebrated the win in front of 3,035 fans, the fourth largest crowd in program history and the fourth top-10 crowd of the season.
Arkansas (22 points) has a three-point lead over South Carolina (19 points) with a game remaining. An Arkansas win Thursday night against Mississippi State would secure the program’s third outright league title.
Junior Sophia Aragon started the scoring almost nine minutes into the match. Forward Morgan White played the ball across the box to Aragon and forward Anna Podojil who were wide open, but Aragon finished it with a shot in between the legs of Ole Miss goalkeeper Shu Ohba.
The next two goals came within exactly two minutes of each other. Freshman Bella Field came in off the bench and doubled the Hogs’ lead in the 25th minute, followed by a 27th-minute goal by senior Ava Tankersley. With the score, Tankersley has registered a point in six straight matches.
Podojil got a goal of her own in the 56th minute, the 49th of her career. Midfielder Bea Franklin headed down a corner kick from defender Emilee Hauser that Podojil, the program’s all-time leading scorer, picked up right in front of the goal and fired in with her right foot. Franklin earned the assist, her second of the match.
Freshman Kennedy Ball scored Arkansas’ final goal of the match, her second of the season. Fellow freshman Sabrina Jones played the ball up to Ball at the top of the 6-yard box, where the undefended Ball fired across the ground with her right foot.
Freshman goalkeeper Phoebe Carver notched her eighth start and played the full 90 minutes for the first time in three matches. Carver gave up her third goal of the season in the 79th minute and tallied two saves.
The Hogs’ 27 shots were the most in an SEC game this season. The Arkansas defense held Ole Miss to just six shots, the seventh time the Razorbacks have held an opponent to a single-digit shot total this season.
Arkansas will close out the regular season with Mississippi State (9-3-4, 4-2-2) at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at Razorback Field.
