Trojans Look to Earn Spot in SBC Championship Game

LITTLE ROCK- The Trojans will face off against number six seed Georgia State in the semifinal round of the Sun Belt Tournament. The winner will head to the Championship game to play the winner of Texas State/South Alabama for a spot in the NCAA Tournament. Little Rock returns to the semifinal round for the second consecutive season and will look to reach the final for the first time since 2009.
 
Trojan Report
The Trojans advanced to the semifinal round after winning a decisive penalty shootout against Arkansas State. After falling to Appalachian State in their final match of the regular season, Little Rock found a way to just edge out the Red Wolves to keep their season alive.
 

Little Rock vs. Georgia State
Date	Nov. 2, 2018
Time	7 p.m. CT
Location	Foley, Ala.
Stadium	Foley Sports Tourism Complex
Stats	StatBroadcast
Video	ESPN+

Trojan Leaders
Liesa Seifert scored the lone goal in the showdown with Arkansas State. Her fourth goal of the season came from a wonderfully whipped in corner from Morgan Smocovich as she used her height to rise above the opposing defenders and head the ball home to level the score at 1-1. Her stellar defense also kept the Trojans in the game all night. Jaclyn Purvine also put in a nice performance in the previous game, firing five shots with four on target. Purvine nearly scored the winner in regular time but her long range effort was denied in the dying seconds. Sara Johannsdottir stole the show, however, making two crucial saves in the penalty shootout to send her team through to the next round. The freshman keeper also made two saves on the night.
 
Last Time Out
Little Rock conceded the opening goal in the 12^th minute the quarterfinal match. The Trojans struggled to find a rhythm in the first half, struggling to create any scoring opportunities. The maroon and silver regrouped for the second half and came out much stronger. After holding more possession and winning a multitude of set pieces, Little Rock found their equalizer through Seifert in the 58^th minute. A back-and-forth goalless overtime period sent the teams to a decisive penalty shootout. The Trojans converted on four of their five spot kicks and Johannsdottir denied the Red Wolves twice to clinch the shootout.
 
Scouting the Panthers
Georgia State comes into the match with an 8-9-2 record after clinching the number six seed in the Sun Belt tournament. The Panthers are coming off a thrilling overtime victory over number three seed Coastal Carolina in the quarterfinal match. The team brings a seven-game unbeaten streak into Friday's match with six wins during that time. Georgia State is playing some very good soccer as of late and will look to continue their success in the attacking third of the pitch as they have scored two or more goals in six of their last seven matches.
 
Series History
Little Rock's matchup with Georgia State marks the eighth in the teams' history. Little Rock leads the all-time series 5-1-1. When the teams met this season, the Trojans grabbed a 1-0 win at home. Sairra Tucker scored the lone goal in the 80^th minute of that match.
 
Looking Ahead
Little Rock will play Sunday in the Championship game of the Sun Belt Tournament in Foley, Ala. at 1 p.m. if they can outlast the Panthers on Friday night.
 
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