The Gators have been a strong second-half team this season. For 10 minutes on Sunday, Mississippi State looked like it may put an end to that trend.
Florida came out of the locker room after halftime with a 1-0 lead, but the Bulldogs scored two minutes into the half and looked to have control of the match.
“It was just a matter of us really not doing what we do well, which is keep the ball, play it and move,” coach Becky Burleigh said.
But after that 10-minute lapse, Florida (12-3-1, 9-1 Southeastern Conference) got its offense back on track and scored three unanswered goals in a 4-1 win against Mississippi State (8-8-1, 1-8-1 SEC).
Sunday was Senior Day for the Gators, and the seniors owned the spotlight.
After being honored with their families on the field before the game, seniors McKenzie Barney, Erika Tymrak and Jo Dragotta accounted for all four of Florida’s goals.
Barney opened the scoring in the fifth minute off a pass from Tymrak, netting the earliest Gators goal of the season.
Florida wouldn’t score again for another 66 minutes. In that time, Mississippi State tied the game and controlled possession early in the second half.
With the game tied at one in the 71st minute, Dragotta received the ball well outside the box and shot a laser into the upper right corner of the goal.
Six minutes later, Tymrak added insurance to the Gators’ lead when she scored on a free kick just outside of the penalty box.
“I saw probably a 4-foot gap between the wall and the post, and the keeper was kind of behind the wall,” Tymrak said. “I basically just focused on hitting the spot.”
Dragotta scored the final goal in the 81st minute after freshman Claire Falknor was fouled by Bulldogs goalkeeper Skylar Rosson. Rosson was given a red card and left the game, and Dragotta scored on the penalty kick against backup keeper CJ Winship.
After entering the season without a goal in her career, Dragotta has scored five times in the past seven games.
Dragotta’s five goals tie sophomore Havana Solaun and Barney for the team lead.
Still, Dragotta is never quite sure how to react when the ball hits the net.
“I kind of just scream every time, because I don’t really know what to do,” Dragotta said.
Senior Jo Dragotta (left) celebrates with junior Adriana Leon (right) after scoring a goal in Florida's 2-1 win against Missouri on Friday at James G. Pressly Stadium. Dragotta is tied for the team lead in goals with five.
