AUBURN, Ala. — Friday, October 13, at 6:30 pm CT, the Auburn Tigers face off against the Texas A&M Aggies, after defeating the #6 Arkansas Razorbacks 2-1 this past weekend.
Auburn is not the only team coming off a victory against a ranked opponent, Texas A&M is as well with a 3-1 defeat over the #19 Alabama Crimson Tide. Friday’s game will certainly be a showdown on the plains, as both Auburn and Texas A&M look to extend their one-game win streak in SEC conference play.
Headed into tomorrow’s game, the clear difference maker in the game will be if the Tigers’ offense can stop the Aggies’ offense or will the Aggies’ offense overwhelm the Tigers’ defense.
Auburn head coach Karen Hoppa had this to say about A&M, “Texas A&M is a great team. They’re stronger than the record may show, and they’ve put together some real quality performances this season.”
If Auburn wants to come out victorious against Texas A&M, they cannot take their foot off the gas after their win against Arkansas and they must bring the same energy to this game as they did against Arkansas. If Auburn does not bring the same energy, then a Texas A&M victory is more than likely, as they lead the SEC in offensive statistics with 37 goals, 38 assists, and 262 shots taken and that’s all during this season.
One of the keys to an Auburn victory is that they are going to have to be able to score. Right now, Auburn has only scored a total of 21 goals this season, compared to Texas A&M’s 37. For Auburn to win, one or both of Anna Haddock and Sydney Richards are going to have to score, as they each have four goals this season, and they are Auburn’s best chance of getting points on the board.
The second key for an Auburn victory is that goalkeeper Maddie Prohaska is going to have to have a great game. With an average of 3.07 saves per game, and a save percentage of 0.729 she is undoubtedly a great goaltender, but if Auburn is going to beat Texas A&M she is going to have to come up with some great saves, to stop the Aggies offense.
The third a final key is that Auburn is going to have to figure out a way to slow down and stop Texas A&M’s offense as they are good at shooting, scoring, and assisting on goal Auburn must figure out a way to stop them for a victory. The best way to do this is going to be to prevent Jazmine Wilkinson from scoring on goal, as she is one of the top goal-scorers in the SEC.
The game between the Auburn Tigers and Texas A&M Aggies is shaping up to be an exciting one, and it’s going to come down to whether Auburn’s defense or Texas A&M’s offense is better prepared to play tomorrow.
