Florida Gators

GAINESVILLE, Florida – The overtime clock clicked toward zero as junior Liz Slattery's right-footed chip lofted toward the goal. It dipped under the crossbar, scoring at the far corner.

Slattery got off the ground where she had fallen while taking the shot and immediately was pulled to the ground again as her teammates mobbed her in celebration.

That goal gave Florida soccer a 2-1 double overtime win over South Carolina Thursday evening. Entering tonight's match, the two teams were both among a three-way tie for the first in the Southeastern Conference standings. The win leaves the Gators in first with two league matches remaining.

What Led Up to the Tie?

The Gamecocks scored first in the sixth minute. A long throw-in by Carly Ray to the middle of the box was not controlled by the Gators, allowing Savannah McCaskill to lob the ball into the far post corner for her 10^th score of the season.

Another Savannah, this time Florida's Savannah Jordan, tied the match in the 21^st minute. Senior Christen Westphal launched a ball from just inside the Florida half. Jordan jockeyed with the defenders, winning control to take a left-footed, sharp-angled shot that scored at the far post.

That finished the scoring for nearly the next hour.

The game-winning goal started with a throw-in by freshman Briana Solis with 10 seconds remaining. The ball bounced around in the box as both teams fought for control. Jordan touched the ball in the center of the box and was tripped up. Meggie Dougherty Howard tried to get a touch but the ball bounced away from the scrum in the middle of the box. Slattery gathered up the ball at the top of the box, took a couple of touches before sending her golden goal which scored with a single tick remaining.

Worth Noting:

·         Slattery's goal is the Gators' latest ever in the two 10-minute overtime format. The previous was Monica Hoyles' golden goal at UCLA in 2001 NCAA Quarterfinal action. That goal at 119:04 sent the Gators to the 2001 NCAA Collegiate Cup.

·         This season, Florida has recorded the latest goals in each overtime (two 10-minute golden goal format). Brooke Sharp's winner at 99:41 versus Oklahoma State on Sept. 2 is the latest in the first overtime. Florida is now 2-1-1 in 2015 overtime action.

·         For Slattery, it was her fourth goal of the season, second game-winner and her first collegiate golden goal.

·         The pair of Gators who are leading the SEC in goals and assists produced Florida's first score. The assist was Westphal's ninth of the season and Jordan now has 15 goals.

·         Freshman goalkeeper Kaylan Marckese's five saves sets her collegiate high.

Late Goal Again Difference

For the third consecutive meeting between Florida and South Carolina, a late goal proved to be the difference.

Another goal at the end of a half by Florida's Nicky Kit at 44:58 was the only goal of the match in the 2009 meeting in Columbia.

What the Gators Said:

On today's match:

"It looked like it was headed toward a tie, which would have benefitted neither of us. It would have benefitted Missouri. I think the fact that we kept playing and kept playing -- it only takes one chance in our sport, and we happened to be on the positive end of that tonight." – Florida head coach Becky Burleigh

On her game-winning goal as time expired:

"I can't even believe that just happened. We willed our way into the 18, and there's 10 seconds left and the fact that we could still keep going and keep pressing. Meggie (Dougherty Howard) and Savannah (Jordan) made a huge effort in the box to get the ball and get it back out, and they were trying to score. It just happened to pop right out to me, and I just took a touch right past the girl and chipped it. It was the most slow-motion thing I've ever witnessed in my life. It was like, 3, 2, 1, net.

"It was a complete team effort. That could not have happened without every single person here, bench or on the field.

"It felt like a good chip, and I felt like I got a good touch on the ball. It felt good when I hit it, but I was like, 'There's no way,' but it went in." – junior midfielder Liz Slattery

More on her golden goal:

"It's unreal. Coming in this game, I never would've expected that. It's just a testament to when you work hard for the people around you and they work hard for you, good things happen." – junior midfielder Liz Slattery

On if she felt rushed during the 10-second countdown:

"Honestly, it was weird. I felt really calm, and I felt like everything just kind of slowed down. The goal itself was really slow, and everything just kind of slowed down as I touched it, and it just went right over her (the South Carolina goalkeeper's) head." – junior midfielder Liz Slattery

On if Florida's adrenaline built during the two overtime periods: 

"I think that the way we came out in both overtimes was just more energetic. I felt like everyone wanted it more at that time. We kind of were a little bit slow this game, getting our rhythm down, so coming out in the two overtimes, I felt really good. I think everyone did, and we were like, 'We're going to win this game,' and we won the game." – junior midfielder Liz Slattery

On what Florida can do moving forward:

"For everyone, it's just continuing the goal to win the SEC, and now we're in a good spot to do it. We just have to finish it out. We appreciate the win and we enjoy it while it's lasting, but tomorrow we get back to work and we have Arkansas on Sunday." – junior midfielder Liz Slattery

On how it feels to pull that type of finish off:

"It feels great, honestly. In the past four years that I've been here, we've never been on that side of that kind of result. We've always been the one disappointed. It definitely meant a lot and it was in such a big game, so we're just really, really excited." – senior defender Christen Westphal

Records:

Florida: 12-3-1, 6-2-1 SEC

USC: 11-4-1, 5-3-1 SEC

Rankings:

Florida is ranked No. 8 on the October 20 National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) poll and South Carolina is No. 17.

Next up:

Florida finishes 2015 regular-season home action when Arkansas comes to town to face the Gators on Sunday, Oct. 25. That match will be played at the Donald R. Dizney Stadium and starts at 6 p.m. It is Senior Day and the careers of the Gators' class of 2015 will be celebrated in a pre-match ceremony.

Sunday's match can be seen on SEC Network +, heard on ESPN Gainesville 850AM/95.3FM or on GatorZone.com.

No. 17 South Carolina (11-3-1, 5-2-1 SEC) at Florida (11-3-1, 5-2-1 SEC)

Stadium: James G. Pressly Stadium (1,771)

Weather: 74 degrees, 70% humidity, clear skies, winds 9mph E

Scoring Summary:

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Shots: Florida 13; USC 14

Saves: Florida 2 (Kaylan Marckese 5); USC 4 (Caroline Kelly 4)