Information from Arkansas Communications is included in this story.
Aniyah Nurse-Whyte didn’t touch the ball on the play that beat Florida. She just made the Gators think she would.
Arkansas lined up for a free kick just outside the 18-yard box with nine seconds left in the first half Sunday in Pensacola, Fla. Either Nurse-Whyte or freshman forward Ivy Harding was going to take it.
Nurse-Whyte faked her run-up, and Florida’s wall broke apart.
Harding sent a low left-footed shot under the wall and past Gators goalkeeper Paloma Pena with seven seconds on the clock.
Nobody scored after that.
The No. 5 seed Razorbacks beat No. 12 seed Florida 1-0 in the first round of the SEC Tournament at Ashton Brosnaham Soccer Complex.
A rematch with Kentucky is next
Arkansas (8-4-4) gets Kentucky again in the quarterfinals, less than two weeks after losing to the Wildcats.
The 4-seed Wildcats and the Hogs play Tuesday, Nov. 10, at 7 p.m.
Kentucky won 3-0 on Nov. 1 in Lexington. It was the regular-season finale for both teams.
That result cost Arkansas a top-four tiebreaker, so there was no first-round bye this year. The Razorbacks had one in each of the previous 10 tournaments.
Tuesday’s game will be their 11th straight quarterfinal appearance.
Arkansas and Kentucky haven’t played in the SEC Tournament since 1994, when Fayetteville hosted it.
Florida pushed early
The Gators (6-7-5) had the better of the first half hour.
Forward Addy Hess forced a diving save from Arkansas keeper Keegan Smith in the ninth minute. Florida had two more shots on goal before the 15-minute mark.
The Hogs’ first chance came in the 16th minute, when junior forward Kyndal Ewertz headed a corner kick wide left.
Florida led 4-1 in shots at the 30-minute mark.
Arkansas started getting looks in the 32nd and 33rd minutes. A free kick and two corners led to three saves, two by Pena and one by a Florida defender. Nurse-Whyte, defender Bella Field and midfielder Natalie Wagner had the attempts.
Senior midfielder Avery Wren later drew the foul that set up Harding’s goal.
Smith closes the door
Arkansas finished the half with six straight shots and went into the break up 7-4 in that category. Smith and Pena each had three saves.
There wasn’t much action after halftime. Florida took all three shots in the first 20 minutes of the second half, and none were on frame.
Freshman forward MacKenzie Gwin nearly added a second goal in the 74th minute, but her shot hit the crossbar. Gwin scored a last-second game-winner against Florida in October.
Pena moved up near the Arkansas penalty box on a late Florida corner kick, but nothing came of it. The Gators’ last two shots also went wide.
Neither keeper made a save in the second half. Florida finished with an 11-10 shot advantage, and Arkansas took the corner count 7-4.
The shutout was Smith’s 16th, which ranks fifth in program history.
Arkansas is now 8-2-0 in its last 10 games against Florida.
