South Carolina finished strong in weekend play at home against Oklahoma 2-1 in double overtime.
The game was slow running up and down the field with offsides and fouls by both teams until the final minutes. The Gamecocks had five fouls in the first half compared to only one foul by the Sooners.
The goals were scored in the first half and in the second overtime to seal the game win for South Carolina with one goal in the second half from Oklahoma.
Gamecock starters included junior Chelsea Drennan at midfield, senior Raina Johnson at forward and sophomore Savannah McCaskill at forward. In goal South Carolina had senior Caroline Kelly.
For the Sooners the starters comprised of sophomore Anna Crawford at defender, junior Shiloh Price at midfield, and sophomore Madeline Brem as defender. Oklahoma started junior Kassidie Stade in goal.
Oklahoma brought 17 players back this season after finishing second in the Big 12 conference in 2014. The Sooners traveled to Columbia, South Carolina after losing their season opener in double overtime to Furman 2-1 where senior Stephanie DeVita scored the winning goal.
After three shots by South Carolina, the fourth was a goal by freshman Courtney Kaplan in the 36th minute of the first half. The assist came from junior Daija Griffin from a cross shot. This is Kaplan’s first goal for the season and the forward's first in her collegiate career. This is Griffin’s fifth career assist for the Gamecocks.
The Sooners had two saves for the first half although they could not save the one goal by the Gamecocks.
The second half consisted of rough play by both teams with a total of seven fouls each in 45 minutes of play. In the 85th minute, however, junior Liz Keester scored the first goal for Oklahoma from inside the box. This is the forward's first goal for the season.
After the team was all tied up 1-1, junior Rachel Ressler received a yellow card in the 88th minute. A corner kick which resulted in no goal for the Gamecocks by Drennan ended the second half and the end of regulation.
For overtime, the two teams played two 10 minute golden goal periods.
The first overtime resulted with two shots by both teams but received no goals and necessitated a second overtime to occur to end the game.
Sophomore Lindsey Lane closed the game in the 105th minute in double overtime after a free kick and loose ball in the box. McCaskill had the assist and this is the first goal of the season for Lane and third in her career.
After weekend play and season openers the Gamecocks are now 2-0. South Carolina returns to the field Friday against Clemson in Clemson, South Carolina at 5:00 p.m.