Senior night for the Alabama Crimson Tide soccer team saw a physical matchup against SEC rival Florida Gators result in an overtime 0-0 tie Sunday night.

Alabama’s record moves to 7-7-2 as the postseason approaches.

“I’m extremely proud of the girls’ effort,” head coach Wes Hart said. “We fought hard and traded some good looks.”

The Tide was effective offensively, keeping possession of the ball for the majority of the game. Alabama racked up eight shots to Florida’s one in the first half. The Gators bounced back in the second half and overtime, finishing with 15 shots to Alabama’s 13, though the Tide was more accurate having five on goal while Florida had four.

“A little bit of a tweak offensively and I think we walk away with a win. The effort from the entire team defensively was fantastic,” Hart said. “I think early in the game we had some pretty good spells of possession. In the second half, tired legs combined with the fact that [Florida] is so good at possessing the ball” allowed them more opportunities.

The Tide seniors played a large factor in the offense’s attack. Abbie Boswell and Emma Welch tied for the team lead in shots along with four other teammates with two.

Defensively, seniors Elena Zang and Kayla Mouton lead the way preventing the Gators from creating many chances. The Tide showed discipline when the Gators threatened, consistently clearing the ball and allowing just two corner plays on the night.

“I was happy each of them got in the game and contributed to the game,” Hart said about his seniors. “They worked hard and I think we’ll miss this class. I think they laid a good foundation for us looking forward, and I’m certainly grateful for everything they’ve given us.”

Both teams played incredibly physical. There were 32 fouls in the game, 15 for Alabama, as well as four cards shown to the Gators, including a red card to Florida’s Melanie Monteagudo in the 108 minute following her second yellow.

Hart said he didn’t think either team played dirty. “Both teams were fighting hard and trying to win. That needs to be the norm for us, if we play with that kind of intensity and fight, I think the future is pretty dang bright here,” he said.

The Crimson Tide still have one more home game left in the regular season against Texas A&M before finishing with two on the road. Alabama will host the Aggies Thursday at 6 p.m.

(Photo courtesy of Hannah Saad and The Crimson White)