Auburn conceded a fourth minute goal to start the match but rallied late with goals from Jessie Gerow and Hailey Whitaker to win its SEC Opener against Kentucky in Lexington, 2-1 in double-overtime.
Kentucky forward Hannah Richardson opened the scoring off a corner kick in the fourth minute to propel the Wildcats to an early 1-0 lead.
The score remained at 1-0 Kentucky for a majority of the match until forward Jessie Gerow scored the equalizer for Auburn in the 81st minute. Gerow’s third goal of the season came off a long free kick from Bri Folds that found Gerow on a header just outside the six-yard box.
The match was sent to overtime at 1-1 and saw no goals scored in the first extra period.
With the golden goal rule in effect during overtime, Hailey Whitaker took full advantage. In the 105th minute, the Auburn forward curled a left-footed shot from 20-plus yards out into the bottom left corner of the net to score the game-winning goal for Auburn. Whitaker’s second goal of the season was assisted by Gerow and Olivia Dedels.
The 2-1 double-overtime win for Auburn improves the Tigers’ record to (4-3-1, 1-0-0 SEC). After this loss, Kentucky falls to (5-2-2, 0-1-0 SEC).
Auburn concludes its two-game road trip this Sunday at 2:30 p.m. CT against Old Dominion.
Solutions by The State News
