AUBURN, Ala. — Auburn soccer completes the opening weekend of conference play on Sunday, Sept. 22, as the No. 6 Tigers welcome Florida to the Auburn Soccer Complex for a 2 p.m. CT matchup.
“Credit to coach Bohon for doing a fantastic job in rebuilding that Florida program. She’s got a very good team that competes with every team they play,” Tigers head coach Karen Hoppa said. “If we want a good result Sunday, we’ve got to really get back to playing with and through each other because that’s what makes us great.”
The Tigers opened league play with a 2-2 draw against Vanderbilt on Thursday. Auburn suffered its first two concessions of 2024, but senior Sydnie Thibodaux and sophomore Dylan Driver each got onto the scoresheet with their third goals of the season to see their squad earn one point in the stalemate.
Florida also began the SEC slate with a draw as they matched No. 20 Kentucky 0-0 on the road. The Gators enter Sunday at 3-1-5 on the year with six shutouts. Three UF goalkeepers combine for an impressive 0.67 goals-against average on 18 saves. Senior Alexa Goldberg has earned all nine starts and absorbed the lion’s share of minutes between the posts.
Offensively, six Florida players account for 10 goals. Freshman Vera Blom leads the way with three.
Florida found its three victories against Western Carolina (2-0), at Georgia State (2-0) and versus Kennesaw State (3-0).
With the draw in Lexington on Thursday, the Gators are 0-1-1 against ranked competition this season. Florida also dropped a 3-0 match to No. 3 Florida State on Sept. 8.
Auburn trails 10-19-2 in the all-time series with the Gators but does have a slight 6-4-1 advantage when meeting on The Plains. Last season, both squads met in Gainesville, where a free kick goal in the dying minutes of the first half sealed a 1-0 result in favor of the Gators.
Both of Auburn’s SEC Championships were clinched with wins over Florida. In 2002, the Tigers locked up the regular season title with a 1-0 win on Oct. 27. On Nov. 6, 2011, Auburn captured the program’s first SEC Tournament title with a 3-2 win in Orange Beach, Alabama.
Brit Bowen and Nick Flohre have Sunday’s call on the SEC Network+. Radio coverage will be provided via WEGL 91.1.
As always, matches at the Auburn Soccer Complex are free and open to the public. Fans in attendance for Sunday’s contest will receive Auburn soccer trucker hats while supplies last.