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AU Athletics
No. 15 Auburn held No. 3 Texas A&M scoreless for two-thirds of the contest but ultimately suffered a 2-0 loss at Ellis Field Monday.
The Tigers (3-3-2) held the highest scoring team in the Southeastern Conference in check until Texas A&M (7-1-0) got on the scoreboard on a breakaway in the 68th minute.
“We’re disappointed with the result,” Head Coach Karen Hoppa said. “A&M is a great team, one of the best teams in the country, but I thought our team was outstanding in our game plan. Our defense was terrific, Maddie Prohaska’s response from Friday was outstanding, and we had chances. We’ve just got to be better when we get those opportunities.”
Freshman goalkeeper Maddie Prohaska made eight saves in the contest, including a pair of diving attempts on back-to-back Texas A&M shots in the 58th minute. The eight saves matched Prohaska’s second-highest total of the season.
After hanging tough with the third-ranked team in the country through the first half, the Tigers had a pair of near chances in the opening minutes of the second half. However, both attempts were just outside the reach of junior midfielder Hailey Whitaker’s right-footed flicks.
Minutes later, Texas A&M countered Whitaker’s run down the middle of the field and broke the ice midway through the second half. Prohaska tried to beat Texas A&M forward Barbara Olivieri to the ball on a breakaway, but the freshman forward one-timed it into the back of the net.
The Aggies added to their advantage with a goal after a corner kick and deflection off the crossbar 15 minutes later.
Auburn’s contest at Texas A&M marked the team’s second road game against a top 10 team in the last two weeks and was the Tigers’ fourth game in a span of 11 days to finish the fall regular season.
“The good thing is we’ll learn a lot from this game at A&M as we head into Orange Beach,” head coach Karen Hoppa said. “Our young group has taken these eight conference games, and I think we’ve grown every week. We’re excited to start a new season down in Orange Beach at the SEC Tournament.”
Auburn makes its 20th straight trip to the SEC Tournament and will take on Georgia (2-3-2) Sunday at 5 p.m. CT in Orange Beach, Alabama.