Alabama
6-5-0, 1-1-0
Missouri
4-5-0, 0-2-0
Tanner’s Late Goal Lifts Alabama Soccer To 2-1 Win Over Missouri
9/23/2021 10:21:00 PM | Soccer
The Crimson Tide earned its first conference win of the 2021 season
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Alabama soccer team (6-5-0, 1-1-0 SEC) rolled past the Missouri Tigers (4-5-0, 0-2-0 SEC), 2-1, in its SEC home opener Thursday night at the Alabama Soccer Stadium.
It was a silent first half for both teams. Despite creating some great offensive efforts, neither team was successful in finding the back of the net. Alabama and Missouri were knotted 0-0 going into the second half with each team totaling three shots.
Alabama came out in the second half with a drive to score. In the 66th minute of the match, Reyna Reyes played a ball through to Gessica Skorka to put her behind the defense. Skorka crossed the ball into the box, finding the foot of Kate Henderson, who volleyed it into the net. Less than a minute later, the Tigers' Macy Trujillo played a ball through to Jadyn Easley, where she placed it into the bottom right corner. With six minutes left in the match, Alabama found a way to win after Riley Tanner and Ashlynn Serepca combine for a give-and-go, sending Tanner into the box to score the game-winner.
From Head Coach Wes Hart
"Great win tonight! Mizzou made it very difficult on us. They had a great game plan and executed it well. They stayed compact and made it difficult for us to play through them.
"I thought we scored a couple great goals! We knew that using the width was going to be key. And sure enough, both goals originated from out wide. Great to see Kate (Henderson) score her second SEC goal in as many games. She's proven to be very dangerous when she gets on the end of crosses. Love having Riley Tanner back at full strength. She had a great assist on Sunday versus UVU and the game-winning goal tonight. She is so incredibly dynamic. She gets faced up and runs at defenders. Getting Reyna (Reyes) back was a huge boost. We weren't sure she was going to play. It was a game-time decision. She was great tonight!"
Reliving tonight's goals ??#RollTide pic.twitter.com/LdoJJdkhyZ
— Alabama Soccer (@AlabamaSoccer) September 24, 2021
Behind the Box Score
- Riley Tanner netted her first goal of the season and first goal as a member of the Crimson Tide
- Kate Henderson scored her fourth goal of the season, and her second goal in three games
- Ashlynn Serepca tallied her third assist of the season, while Gessica Skorka earned her second assist and Reyna Reyes earned her first for the year
- Alabama trailed in shots, earning 11 compared to Mizzou's 13
- The Crimson Tide led the board in corner kicks, collecting six, while the Tigers earned two
- Goalkeeper McKinley Crone registered two saves on the night
- Mizzouri's Jadyn Easley scored her first goal of the season
- Tiger goalkeepers Sophia Worth and McKenna Sheehan combined for four saves
Up Next
Alabama will travel to Nashville, Tenn., to face Vanderbilt in a Sunday afternoon matchup. The Tide is scheduled for a 1 p.m. CT kickoff on Sept. 26.
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.
–UA–
Team Stats
Kate Henderson (4)
Assisted By: Gessica Skorka , Reyna Reyes
Reyes plays a ball through to Skorka to center and find Henderson in the box, who volleys the ball into the net
66:52
Jadyn Easley (1)
Assisted By: Macy Trujillo
Trujillo plays a through ball for Easley, who slides the ball past the keeper
67:06
Riley Tanner (1)
Assisted By: Ashlynn Serepca
Give-and-go by Tanner and Serepca at the top of the box gives Tanner the run in to take on the keeper and score
84:46
