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The Florida Gators are taking on the Texas A&M Aggies in an SEC semifinal that could take them to the SEC tournament final.
Florida entered the tournament as the third seed, while the Aggies are the second seed. Texas A&M completed their best win of the season after defeating the tenth-seeded Missouri Tigers 7-1 in the quarterfinals. Florida got revenge on the sixth-seeded Auburn Tigers with a 1-0 win in their quarterfinals matchup.
Auburn had previously beat Florida 1-0 at home in the regular season. Kickoff is at 7:00 PM ET on SEC Network on Thursday, November 2nd.
https://twitter.com/GatorsSoccer/status/925490806143770624
A Clash of SEC Royalty
Both squads return to the Orange Beach Sportsplex in Orange Beach, Alabama with a clear eye for the goal. The Gators are the current tournament champions, but the Aggies are arguably the favorite with their play this season and win against Missouri.
Texas A&M beat Florida 2-1 in their only regular-season matchup that Florida struggled to defend. A 35-yard shot off a throw-in and a 45-yard freekick highlight the set piece trouble of that match for the Gators. Since then, the Aggies are riding an 11-match win streak, while the Gators have struggled to stay consistent.
However, the ninth-shutout of the season for the Gators can be a confidence booster. In fact, Florida had lost three straight matches against Auburn, including a loss in the NCAA Tournament last season.
This is the third consecutive year where Florida faces an opponent in the semifinal that they lost to in the regular season. Can the Gators overcome another regular season obstacle?
Texas A&M has a lot of firepower to make sure the Gators do not three-peat. Sophomore Ally Watt scored four goals in the quarterfinals, which extends her team lead in goals to 11 this season. The three Gators on the All-SEC first team could be the difference makers for Florida. Parker Roberts, Deanne Rose, and Gabby Seiler will look to repeat they’re great performances this season. Rose is the only freshman on the first team and is the SEC Freshman of the Year.
Texas A&M advances at the SEC Tournament with a 7-1 victory over Missouri! Highlights from the win are below. #12thMan pic.twitter.com/JIO867IzYQ
— Texas A&M Soccer (@AggieSoccer) October 31, 2017
What’s Next?
The Florida Gators or the Texas A&M Aggies will either face Arkansas or Vanderbilt in the final on Sunday, November 5th. The eighth seed Razorbacks won both their previous matches 1-0. One of those wins includes an upset of the first seed South Carolina Gamecocks. On the other hand, fourth seed Vanderbilt defeated Tennessee 1-0 in their quarterfinals matchup.
The finale airs on SEC Network at 3:00 PM ET and will be a big decider of rankings before the NCAA Tournament kicks off.
