Redshirt freshman defender Lauren Flynn’s first collegiate goal couldn’t have come sooner for the Missouri women’s soccer team (8-1, 3-0 Southeastern Conference) as the Tigers defeated Ole Miss, 2-1, in the their SEC home opener Friday night.
Tied up 1-1 with 12 minutes left in the game, senior midfielder Haley Krentz launched a curving corner kick into the box, which pinballed around Ole Miss defenders until finally ending up in Flynn’s sights.
Promptly, Flynn buried the ball deep into the net, scoring the go-ahead goal.
The fourth-largest crowd Columbia had ever seen with 1,539 people literally shook the stands with excitement over Flynn’s goal, which lifted the Tigers to an 8-1 record, the program’s best start ever.
“It felt really good,” Flynn said. “I’m in shock. I’m just waiting for someone to come up and say it was offsides and take it away …”
Flynn’s goal helped Missouri to its third win in three games against SEC opponents and provided another example of the team’s come-back personality in the later moments of games this season.
“We’re a second-half team,” coach Bryan Blitz said. “But we talked about after the game that we can’t rely on the second half because we are going to find a team who can put the game away. … We have to be able to start quicker.”
The game really was a tale of two halves. During the first, Ole Miss dominated the ball, going up 1-0 on a goal by Bethany Bunker that was assisted by Rafaelle Souza.
But Missouri held the advantage in shots, 12-8, in the first half. The Tigers couldn’t send one through, though.
Sophomore midfielder Taylor Grant came incredibly close with 35 minutes left, landing a shot off the left post and sending Rebel goalie Kelly McCormick to the ground.
“It was frustrating but we were getting opportunities, so we tried to focus on that,” Krentz said. “It made us work harder and better.”
Down by a goal, the Tigers’ defense quieted the Rebels in the second half, keeping the team in contention. Ole Miss went into last night’s contest leading the SEC in goals scored as a team with 30.
Missouri’s offense continued to put pressure on the Rebels’ defense. Finally, after several near misses, the Tigers scored an equalizer at the 37th minute.
Again, Krentz set up the goal, tiptoeing around Rebel defenders along the goal line, nearly kicking the ball out of bounds. Krentz found sophomore midfielder Abi Raymer, who tapped it in for her fourth goal of the season.
“We were just more hungry in the second half,” Krentz said. “It was a whole team effort. Everyone just focused more.”
Raymer’s goal and Krentz’s assist gave each 10 points on the season, making them shareholders of the team’s most points.
The Tigers will host Vanderbilt at 1 p.m. Sunday at Walton Stadium. Missouri has not lost a Sunday game yet this season.
“We let them celebrate tonight,” Blitz said of his players. “But for us, we always talk about how Sundays are made for champions. It’s not about soccer skill. It’s usually about who wants it more.”