COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The No. 6 Texas A&M Aggies host the No. 21 South Carolina Gamecocks in a 4 pm match at Ellis Field on Sunday afternoon. The Maroon and White would earn a share of the SEC regular-season title with a win in the contest.
Texas A&M (14-2-1, 8-1-0 SEC) enters the contest with 24 points and a three-point lead over Florida (12-4-0, 7-2-0 SEC) in the league standings. The Gators host LSU (5-11-2, 1-7-1 SEC) in a 1 pm match on Sunday. With one playing date remaining on the league slate, next Thursday (10/30), the Aggies would earn a share of the title with a three-point lead after Sunday's fixtures and an outright title with a lead of four points or more after the weekend.
The Maroon and White are riding a five-match win streak heading into Sunday's contest. Midfielder Janae Cousineau has a goal in all five of the wins during the stretch. Cousineau is the first Aggie to score in five straight matches since Ashlee Pistorius in 2007. Annie Kunz has found the net four times in the last four matches.
Sunday's match will feature A&M's high-octane offense and South Carolina's stonewall defense. The Aggies lead the SEC in scoring with 45 goals on the season and 2.65 goals per match. A&M is also the top scoring team in league action with 25 goals in nine matches (2.78 gpg).
Led by 2013 SEC Defensive Player of the Year Sabrina D'Angelo in goal, the Gamecocks lead the league with a 0.51 goals-against average, allowing just nine goals in 1,593 minutes of play. South Carolina (11-4-2, 4-3-2 SEC) has nine shutouts on the season and the Gamecocks have only allowed multiple goals in a game on one occasion.
The Aggies also boast a stout defense. The Maroon and White backline has allowed just 61 shots-on-goal in 17 matches, an average of just 3.59 per match. A&M has allowed just eight goals in 810 minutes of league play and their 0.89 goals-against average in SEC action ranks fourth.
The squads have met on three prior occasions since A&M joined the SEC in 2012, with the Aggies winning all three of the tightly contest matches. The Maroon and White have eliminated the Gamecocks from the SEC Tournament the last two seasons. In 2013, Liz Keester scored two goals in the first 12 minutes and A&M held on for the 2-1 win in a semifinal meeting. In 2012, Allie Bailey scored a golden goal in the 94th minute of a 1-0 win in a quarterfinal match.
Texas A&M wraps up the regular-season on Thursday with a 7 pm match against the Georgia Bulldogs at Ellis Field.
A&M Hosts Carolina Sunday with Chance to Claim SEC Championship
The No. 6 Texas A&M Aggies host the No. 21 South Carolina Gamecocks in a 4 pm match at Ellis Field on Sunday afternoon. The Maroon and White would earn a share of the SEC regular-season title with a win in the contest.