No. 8 Arkansas Takes Care of Georgia, 4-1
ATHENS, Ga. – The Razorbacks (9-2-0, 4-0-0 SEC) scored three goals in the first eight minutes and never looked back, defeating Georgia (8-3-1, 1-2-1 SEC), 4-1, for their ninth straight victory, the longest win streak in program history.
How it Happened
It took 58 seconds for the Hogs to get on the board. Freshman Sophia Aragon kicked the ball back out from the Georgia end line, between the legs of forward Parker Goins for the dummy, connecting with midfielder Taylor Malham at the penalty spot for the finish into the lower left part of the goal.
Three minutes later, Malham linked up with Goins near midfield, where Goins found it at the top of the penalty box and into the net to double the Razorbacks’ lead.
Arkansas added its third goal in the eighth minute, this time off a free kick from Kayla McKeon just outside the top of the penalty box. McKeon sent it between a wall of Bulldog defenders for her second goal of the season.
Georgia struck back in the 14th minute after midfielder Abby Boyan scored off a breakaway pass from midfielder Daniella Murguia. The goal was just the fourth allowed by the Hogs in their last nine games.
Arkansas added insurance in the 48th minute with Malham’s second of the day. Another free kick from McKeon, this time near the far corner, found Malham at the top of the six-yard box, where she finished it off with a soft header into the lower-left corner of the net.
Malham earned her second brace of the season, netting her sixth and seventh goals of the 2021 campaign.
The Razorbacks finished the match outshooting the Bulldogs 15-9. The Hogs have outscored their last eight opponents 34-4. Arkansas also earned its 10th straight SEC road victory.
Hear It From Coach Hale
“Championship cultures don’t make excuses when things get difficult, they find ways to win; losing cultures blame all sorts of factors. We’ve made a decision to be the former. We will never allow ourselves to be infected by that. Our staff has complete confidence in all our players because of not only their talent, but also their mentality and commitment to be great. We needed some kids to step up today and they did in a big way.”
Next Time Out
The Razorbacks return to Fayetteville, facing Alabama (7-6-0, 2-2-0 SEC) on Thursday, Oct. 7, at 6 p.m. CT. The match will be televised on SEC Network.
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