COLUMBIA, S.C. –No. 19 Alabama women’s soccer fell to No. 3 South Carolina, 1-0, on Friday night at the Eugene E. Stone III Stadium in its opening Southeastern Conference match of the year. After the first half ended in a deadlock, the Gamecocks tallied the lone goal of the game in the 76th minute on a penalty kick. The Crimson Tide (7-2, 0-1) suffered its second loss of the season while South Carolina (7-1, 1-0) recorded its fifth consecutive victory.
Alabama is now 11-11-2 in conference openers and drops to 5-5-1 when those matches are on the road.
Freshman Casey Wertz led the offensive charge for the Tide recording three shots with two on frame, and senior goalkeeper Kat Stratton made two saves in 90:00 minutes of play.
Despite a valiant offensive performance in the first half, South Carolina edged Alabama in shots, 9-8, and the Gamecocks earned nine corners to the Tide’s two.
Alabama returns to the pitch on Sunday, Sept. 17 at 5 p.m. CT to conclude non-conference play against Chattanooga at the Alabama Soccer Complex.
