Alabama Soccer Fights to Double Overtime Draw at Georgia, 1-1

Sunday, October 21

Athens, Ga.

1 p.m. CT

Alabama

8-7-3, 2-5-2

Georgia

4-8-5, 1-5-3

OT 1

OT 2

Alabama

Georgia

Alabama Soccer Fights to Double Overtime Draw at Georgia, 1-1

10/21/2018 5:23:00 PM | Soccer

Box Score Georgia Box Score

Kaley Verpaele scores the Crimson Tide’s lone goal in the draw

ATHENS, GA. – The Alabama soccer team tied Southeastern Conference foe Georgia, 1-1, in double overtime on Sunday afternoon at the Turner Soccer Complex. With the draw, Alabama's overall record is now 8-7-3 and 2-5-2 in SEC play, while Kentucky moves to 4-8-5 and 1-5-3 in league play.

"Disappointed that we weren't able to come away with 3 points, especially after taking the lead early in the second half," head coach Wes Hart says. "But I have to give Georgia credit. They played hard. They did not make it easy on us. Our focus now shifts to Auburn. It's a huge rivalry game that our players are very much looking forward to. Our SEC Tournament hopes are still very much alive."

The first half was a stalemate, despite some anxious moments for both teams. The most dangerous sequence came from sophomore Kaley Verpaele rocketing a shot just high of the net in the 25^th minute.

Alabama came out strong in the early minutes of the second half and was rewarded in the 48^th minute, as sophomore Brynn Martin chipped the ball to teammate Verpaele for a header into the net.

The Bulldog's leveled the score nine minutes later, thanks to Abby Boyan's shot from outside the box. With less than 20 minutes left in the second half, the Crimson Tide defense continued to push the limits, and the offense went back to work looking for the go-ahead goal.

The Tide wasted little time, drawing a foul on the Bulldogs in the 73rd minute and lining up its free kick. Senior Christiania Maartensson took the kick and landed the shot perfectly on-goal, but Georgia goalkeeper stopped the ball from advancing.

Sophomore Casey Wertz, found herself in the middle of the action, driving the middle of the pitch and launching a shot from over 20 yards out in the final minute of the second half.

After 90 minutes of action, the game moved into overtime. The first 10 minutes was a back-and-forth affair with the Tide taking two shots. The second featured an attacking Alabama offense, but its three attempts did not tickle the twine as the teams settled for the tie and earned one point toward the league standings.

Overall, the Bulldogs out-shot the Tide, 17-15, but Alabama had a 7-4 on-goal advantage. Sophomore Alex Plavin played the full match in the net for Alabama, accounting for three big saves.

Alabama hits the road for its last conference match at Auburn on Thursday, Oct. 25, at 1 p.m. The contest can be seen on SEC Network.

Get all the latest information on the team by following @AlabamaSoccer on Twitter and Facebook and AlabamaSoccer on Instagram. General athletic news can also be found at UA_Athletics on Twitter and Instagram and AlabamaAthletics on Facebook.